The Power of One
by Kat-the-Echidna
Summary: It was exciting to finally get a Pokémon and travel around in a new region with new friends. Who knew that we would get caught up in a mess that endangered everyone in Kalos, and possibly around the world. We all have the power to change the world for better or for worse. But it will always come with a hefty price...
1. To Start Anew

**A/N:** Gaaahh X and Y is SO good - I couldn't resist the chance of writing a sort of self-insert. Seriously, I know the majority of the Pokémon fanbase has played the game, and I'm surprised I haven't seen a lot of X and Y fan fictions yet. Regardless, I've been DYING to write this down.

Now, the reason for the self-insertion...1. I never really wrote a good one, and 2. you're not stuck with a default character in this game - you can customize your character in any way you want, ranging from clothes, hairstyle and color, and your skin. I felt more in the game because I could make a character that reflected me, y'know?

As for the story...I'm playing through the game for a second time. I played through Pokémon X on launch day and finished in...about a week or so. I'm playing through Y now. It's so much fun - with all the new AND old Pokémon you can get in the game, the replay value is freakin' amazing. I know I still have to complete some other stories on my channel, but I can't contain myself this time. I seriously HAVE to get this down.

Now that my rambling's done, enjoy!

* * *

_"-The Heart Pattern has to be the most popular pattern for Furfrou among female owners. The Pharaoh and Star Patterns coming in second for both genders-"_

Click.

_"-An alarming outbreak of Dugtrio has appeared on Route 13. Though they show no signs of endangering the ecosystem in the area, it is still a precaution to travelers and Trainers to be exceedingly careful when traversing through-"_

Click.

_"-As you all know, famous Rhyhorn Rider Grace Yvetta has made her home right here in Kalos! Though she's on a short vacation, we will be able to see her take part in our very own International Rhyhorn Races coming this summer after an ASTONISHING win in the championship-"_

Click.

_"-A new feature has recently been released for the Holo Caster! You can now look up a person's profile to add them to your contacts without the need to exchange codes in person-"_

Click.

"Chi-chiii~"

Pepper fluttered over and landed on my desk, before tilting her head slightly at me. I held out my hand towards her and she immediately bounded up my arm and down my stomach until she was perfectly perched on my left knee. Mom and I recently moved to the quaint little town of Vaniville Town a few days ago. During the confusion of unloading our stuff and dealing with an uncooperative Rhyhorn, a Fletching started hanging around the house. At first it would just sit on the fence or on one of the window sills and watch us with all day before flying back to where ever it came from. Then is actually started staying around, as if it made its home here with us. Mom and I befriended her after a while, and she's been with us since then. I was the one who gave her her nickname, Pepper (for the record, I didn't know that Pepper was a Fletchling until after Dad informed us when he came to check on us a few days after we moved in).

Today was actually the first time I've been able to just relax and not have to worry about unpacking any more items from the move. We had a LOT of stuff to unload from the truck, and it was a pain in the ass. I haven't been outside yet - well, I have, but I haven't went past the front yard. I would just sit out there and play with Ryder (our Rhyhorn) and Pepper for hours on end until I went back in. The kids who live near us are completely enarmored by Ryder, and often sit out in front of our house and watch me play with him. It felt kinda good, being admired by little kids. Then again, I already was a bit famous since Mom's a star in her own right. I don't know what I'm gonna do - though I know how to participate in the races after being taught how to ride Ryder when I started walking, but I don't think that's what I want to do. Dad's a Pokémon Ranger - he always has some cool story of saving people and Pokémon to tell us whenever he's able to come home for holidays. Although Rangers are cool, I don't think I could do that either; I hear Rangers require a lot of training.

I gave up trying to find something interesting to watch on TV and turned over to see what time it was. It was 8:18pm - the day went by kinda fast. My room felt kinda empty, the only part of it that seemed remotely like a normal room was where my bed, desk, and TV were. The rest was just open space, if you don't count the dresser and closet. Then again, I shouldn't be surprised - my room was the entirety of the second floor. Everything else like the bathroom, kitchen, Mom's room and living room was downstairs. Our house was pretty nice, then again, that was to be expected from a family who made a good amount of money from their jobs. I don't let this fame and fortune go to my head though - if you could ask my parents what was the best thing about their daughter, they would always say that I was too humble for my own good. "I just wish we could get her out the house more!" is what Mom would add afterward. Apparently, playing in the front yard with a Rhyhorn doesn't count as "going outside."

"Kat?" I looked up and saw my Mom poking her head up into my room. Pepper immediately flew from my knee and gracefully landed on Mom's shoulder. Mom was a pretty woman, and I'm not saying that because she's my mom - it's true. Light brown skin, short orangish-brown hair, hazel eyes, and a body type that is the envy of most models. Elesa's figure comes first for obvious reasons, but Mom's a close second. Dad's darker and has black hair, so I look more like him than I do Mom. The only thing that I have from my mom are her eyes. "Dinner's ready."

My stomach growled. "Coming."

. . .

"So, I have some news for you."

I looked up from my plate and gave my mom a quizzical look. "What? You won another bet on the Rapidash Derby?"

"Very funny, but no," she laughed "You know our neighbors have kids around your age, right? Well...apparently you were invited to go on a little adventure with them tomorrow. I heard it required five kids."

I fed Pepper some crumbs from my bread. "And I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that I was the fifth kid, right?"

"You'd be right. From what I was told, this region's renowned Pokémon Professor is taking in students for something important. I wasn't given the details, not all of them, anyway. They wanted to wait to see what your answer was before I was informed on anything else."

I slowly chewed on my pasta as I started thinking about the offer. I didn't know anything about the other teens in this town, so I wasn't entirely sure if I was ready to suddenly jump up and go on some sort of errand for the region's Professor. And why five? What was so important that it required five teens to go to who knows where for whatever? Then again, I know nothing about the Kalos region, and I haven't been anywhere besides the front lawn. And it would be cool to have some friends here...I didn't really have any back in Johto - they only wanted to be my friends because my mom was famous. I just hope that the same thing doesn't happen here.

"It sounds cool," I murmured after swallowing the food in my mouth.

"I think you should go for it!" she encouraged "I know we just moved in, but there's a whole new world out there waiting for you. Who knows? You might discover what you want to do as a career." She suddenly paused and gave me a sympathetic look. "I just hate we had to leave Johto when you finally got your Trainer's Card."

"Mom, it's fine," I smiled "There was nothing you could do about it. After winning the National Championship in Johto, it's only natural to be accepted by the International League. It sucks that we had to move. I mean, I miss Johto. It was where I was born, y'know? But hey, it's not the end of the world. We got a fresh start here."

Mom grinned. "That's my girl! I knew you wouldn't let the move hinder your spirit." She laughed to herself. "You really are your father's child, you know that? He's the same way."

I twirled the last few strands of pasta on my plate, watching Pepper peck at a string bean. "You miss him, don't you?"

"A little bit," she nodded "At least he still comes around when he can."

Silence. I try not to talk about Mom's "relationship" with Dad anymore. They were married at some point, but they separated about a year ago. I was told that the separation was mutual, but I have yet to understand why they split in the first place; They won't tell me for some weird reason, but I don't pry about it anyway.

Mom and I shared small talk for the rest of the meal. We talked about normal stuff - Mom had to start practicing for the races in a few weeks, so there's a possibility that I'll have to be enrolled into a school while she's out during the day. We finished dinner and I helped her clean up, then spent a good portion of the night watching a movie together. Well, we weren't exactly "watching" the movie, but more-so talking about the plot, our favorite and least favorite characters, how well executed were the effects, and what's the best snack food to eat during said movie. We didn't finish it, though. Since I had to get up pretty early the next day, Mom shooed me to bed and retired to her room afterward. I looked out at Ryder form my bedroom window to see how he was doing. turned out he was just fine and fast asleep, since I could hear his snores from my window. I silently wished him goodnight and went to bed, but I found myself unable to sleep. I found my 3DS charging on the nightstand, so I grabbed it and started playing _Fire Emblem: Awakening_ before finally falling asleep.

. . .

_"Chii-chii, TWEEEEEEEE~!"_

"Ow, OW! Okay, I'm up! Stop pecking me!" I swatted at Pepper as she fluttered around my head, singing the song of her Fletching brethren at an annoyingly loud volume. I still say Pokémon are better than regular alarm clocks, mostly because you're always happy to see them when you wake up. The only downside is that you can't hit them until they shut up. Not that I would ever hit Pepper mind you, but there's a strange satisfaction of being able to physically stop the thing getting on your nerves.

I groggily got up and sat on the edge of my bed, mentally cursing myself for staying up a few more hours to play video games. I looked over at the clock and saw that it was just 7:03am. Arceus...why did I have to get up so early? Wasn't there something important I had to do today...?

"Kat, I hope you're up! You have to go meet up with the other kids today!"

Oh. Right. That thing I was supposed to do for Sycamore. Now I remember. Thanks Mom.

"I'm up!" I called. Fletchling flew back downstairs with me following. I took a quick shower and spent nearly 10 minutes going through some old clothes to find something to wear. I ended up finding that red and black dress my mom bought a few months back. she got it so I could wear it at the award ceremony when she won the championship. I haven't put it back on since then. It was a cute dress, but I think it looks gross on me. I instead put on one of my tank tops, some jeans, my cap and shoes. I didn't think I was really going anywhere, so I left my bag on my chair and went downstairs.

"Ready to go, I see," Mom remarked "Unfortunately, I couldn't make you breakfast in time. They're already waiting outside for you. I told them you would be right out."

The moment of truth..."It's okay. This isn't the first time I skipped breakfast." I went into the cabinet and got a granola bar and stuffed it into my pocket before heading towards the door. I told Mom I would be back and stepped outside...

...only to immediately have someone run up to my face.

"HI!" I had to take a step back from the person, only to see that it was a girl around my age, possibly a bit younger. Light brown skin, brown hair in these odd pigtails, wore a hot pink shirt covered in black bows, shorts with black frills, a hot pink bracelet with another bow, and pink boots. She must really love bows and the color pink.

"Uh...hi?" I blinked.

"Don't mind her. She can be kinda flighty sometimes."

Pigtails turned to face the other person and huffily placed her hands on her hips. "Who are you calling 'flighty'?"

The other person chuckled before calmly walking over and holding out his hand towards me. "Hi there, neighbor. The name's Calem." Compared to the girl, Calem looked like a pretty normal guy. Short black hair, gray eyes, wore a blue jacket, jeans, and black boots with a bag strapped around his shoulder.

"And I'm Shauna~!" the girl sang after tearing my hand from Calem's. "Nice to meet you!"

"N-nice to meet you too," I said "You probably already know who I am though."

"'Course we do," Calem said "Your name's Kat, right? I think everyone knows the name of Grace's daughter by now. She's famous worldwide, y'know." He then looked over at Ryder, who was lying on his favorite white mat, snoozing the morning away. "It's pretty cool to have an awesome Pokémon like Rhyhorn just sitting in your front yard, huh?"

"Yeah." I gently rubbed Ryder's head, and got a snore in response. "He's a good boy, when he's not laying around asleep all day." I gave Ryder one last pat before following Calem and Shauna towards the front gate that led out to Route 1. It was a really short walk from Vaniville to Aquacorde Town, which was where the so-called "meeting" was suppose to take place with the other two kids.

"So, do you know why we were called out here?" Calem suddenly asked.

"All I know is that this region's Professor had an assignment for five kids. I don't know what for, though."

"We'll tell you EVERYTHING once we get to Aquacorde," Shauna said as she skipped ahead of us. "But I will tell you one thing - once we get to there, the three of us are getting a Pokémon!"

Say what? "Whoa, really? Like, for real?"

"Yup," Calem nodded. "Professor Sycamore - the professor of this region - is giving us each a Pokémon. Apparently, it's required for whatever he wants us to do. But I'm excited anyway."

"Me too!" Shauna bounced "Once we get our Pokémon, we'll officially be Trainers! Isn't that awe-soome~?"

I laughed. "Wow, I lucked out a bit."

"Why's that?" Calem asked.

I hummed a little. "Well...my mom and I originally came from Johto. I had just got approved to be a Trainer - got my Trainer's Card and everything in the mail when my mom won the Championship. During the ceremony, I was told that we would have to move here in Kalos since she was going to take part in the International Races. So we moved before I could become a genuine Trainer...I was pretty bummed."

"Wow, I bet that sucked," Shauna pouted. "But at least you can become a Trainer here! Just after you moved too!"

"Speaking of," Calem spoke up "we're here."

Shauna and I looked around only to see that we had already entered Aquacorde's gates. Aquacorde was a nice, quaint little town that was nestled comfortably in front of a river. Tan buildings with blue roofs were the overall theme, a small fountain stood in the town's plaza at the very center, and two cafes were near the gates to Route 1. This was my very first time coming here, so I was immediately taken in by the foreign beauty of the place, even if it was just another small town.

_"Hey! Calem! Shauna! Over heeere!"_

All of our heads turned towards one of the tables to the left of the entrance. Two boys were sitting at them - one was on the chubby side with short dark hair and the other was small and frail looking with bright orange hair.

"Hiiiii! Tierno! Trevor!" Shauna called before bounding over to the table. Calem and I followed suit, and sat at the table with the two boys. Shauna sat at the end next to Tierno and I, I sat across from Tierno, and Calem sat across from Trevor.

"Looks like the gang's all here!" the chubby one exclaimed happily "And hey! You even brought the new girl! Awesome! I'm Tierno - nice to meet ya!" He then motioned at the smaller boy next to him. "And this is Trevor. He's a bit quiet and shy, but a Pokémon genius in the making. He always got good marks on his tests when we were in school."

"I'm Kat," I said, smiling "Pleasure to meet you both."

"So, c'mon Tierno! Where's our Pokémon? I wanna meet my partner already!" Shauna whined while peering over at said boy.

"Alright, alright! Calm down!" Tierno said "I can't give you your Pokémon yet. We have to go over Professor's Sycamore's request, remember?"

"Oh, that's right," Trevor murmured, finally speaking "Um...Kat's new to this, so I...I guess we better explain." He then pulled out a silver case from his bag and placed it on the table. He opened it, revealing three square devices sitting inside. "Professor Sycamore selected five kids - us - to be his students. He wants us to go on a journey around Kalos and fill in the pages of the Pokedex."

"Wait," I asked "so he's asking us to go out and catch every Pokémon known to man? Do you know how hard that is?"

"And Kalos is home to many other Pokémon from other regions as well," Calem noted "It won't be an easy feat."

Trevor nodded. "You're right, but that's not what I meant. You see, the Pokedex can automatically record data on a Pokémon on its own without the assistance of a Trainer catching Pokémon, like it does in Kanto for example. For this one, all you have to do is point it at a Pokémon to scan it. The Pokedex will then gather data from the image and automatically record the page entry, so it's a lot easier. However, it still requires you to actively search for Pokémon if you want to get every page filled."

"I get it," I nodded "so we just scan a Pokémon that hasn't been recorded and the page will fill itself?"

"That's one way of putting it, yes," Trevor replied with a nod. "Though, catching a Pokémon wouldn't be a bad idea either. If you catch a Pokémon, other data like the Pokémon's exact height, weight and moves will be recorded for your use. If you just scan a Pokemon for the data, you'll just get the standard entry. Regardless of that, the page will be filled anyway. It's just up to you whether or not you want the extra data or not."

"That sounds like fun!" Shauna squealed, slight bouncing in her seat. "Think of all the Pokémon we could see out there! Think of the memories we could have!"

"Even though we were given a task by Sycamore," Calem added "that doesn't mean we can't have fun either. We should enjoy the fact that we can go out and explore Kalos on our own, at our own pace. We might end up finding out more about ourselves in the process, like a sort of growing experience."

An adventure through a foreign region on my own with a Pokémon by my side...sounds pretty damn awesome. It actually sounds better than going through a region that you know about - it makes exploring even more exciting when you don't know what to expect down the road. And hey, a couple of traveling buddies don't hurt either. Maybe this will turn out okay after all.

"Now, without further ado," Tierno suddenly announced, before pulling out a silver cylinder from his bag. "You can now pick out your Pokémon!" He pressed a button, and the cylinder opened up to reveal three Pokeballs, sitting perfectly on a cushion. Those sphere devices contained my potential partner - a partner that will accompany me through my journey and the rest of my life. Once that Pokeball is in my hand, I will become an official Pokémon Trainer. My heart began to pound faster as adrenaline and excitement ran through my veins. What kind of Pokémon were inside? What type would I get? Would I be able to raise it correctly? What if it doesn't like me? What if I can't become a good Trainer like my mom or dad? How would I venture through Kalos when I would be so lost? No...no, don't think that way. You WILL be a good Trainer and your Pokémon WILL like you. You'll just have to treat them like another human being is all - become its friend. Easy, right?

"Ohmygosh-ohmygosh-ohmygoooooosh! This is sooooo excitiiiing~!" Shauna squealed. "We all grab one on 3, okay?"

I didn't like the sound of that. "Shauna, wait-"

"1, 2, 3, GO!" Tierno and Trevor backed away in their chairs as Shauna and Calem reached out towards the cylinder in a speed that matched a bullet, causing their chairs to fall over and the table to rock a bit. I didn't want to be outdone, so I did the same at the last minute and grabbed the first Pokeball my hand brushed on. We each had a Pokeball in our hands after we pulled back, but none of us knew what was inside. Shauna didn't seem to care though - she was too busy bouncing around the table clutching her Ball tightly.

"I got a Pokémon~! I got a Pokémon~!" she sang, before tossing the Ball into the air. It opened in a flash, and a energy materialized on the ground, turning into the shape of a little chipmunk-like Pokemon that was brown all over, except for the green spiky hat-thing on its head, buckteeth and a tail. I never saw anything like it before, but it was pretty freakin' cute, whatever it was. The little chipmunk's nose twitched as it looked around at its surroundings, before noticing Shauna squatting down in front of it, staring at it with big eyes and a wide grin.

"Ches?" it squeaked, tilting its head at her.

"Awww, you're so cute!" Shauna cooed, before petting it. "I'm going to name you Chester." "Chester" only squeaked with happiness as Shauna showered it in affection. Curious, I held up my Pokedex towards it. It scanned the Pokemon's image, and it appeared on screen while the entry began to type itself out on its own.

"Chespin, huh? I murmured, looking at the data that was displayed before me. "It's a Grass type."

"I guess it's my turn," Calem said before tossing his Pokeball. In the same flash, another Pokémon materialized in front of us. This time it was a blue frog-like Pokémon with yellow eyes white bubbles around its neck and on its nose. It just sat there and stared up at Calem, as if it were studying him.

"...Frooo-ooaak..." it croaked. Calem knelt in front of it and offered its hand. The small frog stared at it, then at Calem, then back at the hand before deciding he was trustworthy and up Calem's arm until it was on his shoulder. I used my Pokedex to obtain data on it like I did Chespin, and I learned that this Pokémon was the Water type, Froakie. So...if Shauna got the Grass starter and Calem got the Water starter, that meant-

"That means Kat got Fennekin!" Shauna suddenly exclaimed.

I gave her a look. "Fennewho?"

"Open your Pokeball and find out," Calem suggested. I looked down at my Pokeball, feeling the same excitement and uneasiness I felt shortly before we grabbed the Pokeballs. I didn't know what kind of Pokémon it was, besides the fact that it was going to be a Fire type. I took a deep breath, mentally said a short prayer to Arceus, and tossed my Ball into the air. The world seemed to have slowed down as I watched the sphere device pop open to reveal the all-too familiar energy as it materialized on the ground in front of me. It revealed a small yellow fox Pokémon with big ears and orange fur inside said ears. It was facing me when it came out of its ball, unlike the other two, sitting there with a smile on its face. There was a look on its face that seem to say "hello, nice to meet you! I'm your new partner!" or something along those lines. I could barely contain my excitement, but managed to stay calm as I registered it into my Pokedex. Just like Shauna said before, it was a Fennekin, a Fire type. A female, no less.

I knelt in front of her in the same fashion Calem did and started petting Fennekin. She whined contently as I spoke to her. "Hi there, Fennekin. I'm Kat, and you're my new partner."

"Ahrf!" was the reply I got. I was content with it regardless, since it looked like Fennekin liked me. I just wanted to spend time with Fennekin - I didn't care about the journey at this point. Shauna had other plans, however.

"Alrighty then! Kat!" she exclaimed while dramatically pointing at me "I challenge you to a battle!"

"Wait, what?" I did a double-take "You mean...now?"

"Yes, now!" Shauna replied "As a Trainer, you now have to accept my challenge and battle me! I wanna see how strong cute lil' Chester is!"

"They won't be too strong since we just got them" Calem said "a little early training wouldn't hurt. Besides, this is a good opportunity to become more in sync with Fennekin, as well as get a little battle experience. You're going to get challenged and challenge many other Trainers on your journey, so it's best to get started now before going out completely clueless."

"Good point," I murmured, then sighed. "Alright, I accept your challenge, Shauna."

"YAY!" Shauna bounded over to the opposite side of where I stood with Chester following at her heels. I checked my Pokedex again to see what kind of moves Fennekin had at her disposal. With a move set of Tackle, Tail Whip and Ember, I was pretty much set, since I had a type advantage over Shauna. Let's hope that after all these years of watching my mom and dad battle, I can at least show that I learned something from them.

"Get ready girl," I said as I stood up "it's battle time." Fennekin let out another bark before taking her position in front of me and growled. Chester did the same, though he failed since he looked adorable doing it. A some of the townsfolk began to make a small crowd around us, wanting to see the match between two rookie Trainers right in front of the town's gate.

"I'm going to be courteous and let you have the first move, Shauna!" I called, feeling more adrenaline course through my veins.

"That's going to be your downfall, Kat!" Shauna retorted. "Okay Chester, Tackle!" Chester charged headfirst towards Fennekin, but I noticed that it was a bit on a slow side. If Fennekin is faster - which I'm pretty sure she is - I might be able to use that to my advantage. I waited until Chester was about to collide when I retaliated.

"Dodge!" Fennekin's ear twitched, and in that same motion it darted to the right just before Chester could hit, causing him to make a sudden stop and collect himself. "Ember!" the orange fur in Fennekin's ear glowed faintly as a fireball was shot form her mouth and hit Chester on his right side. It let out a high-pitched pained cry as it turned to face us, making me feel sorry for the poor lil' guy. But a battle was a battle, and I had to win.

Shauna let out a distraught scream as she covered her mouth, then seemed to throw some sort of tantrum. "You're not getting away with that! Tackle again, Chester!" Chester gritted his teeth and charged again, though he seemed considerably weak since he was even slower then last time. One more hit with Ember should be enough to take it out, but I decided to go out with style this time around.

"Wait for him to come in close," I told the fox. She nodded and waited. Chester began to close in...just a few more seconds and...

"JUMP!" Fennekin launched herself into the air, facing down at Chester who missed his target yet again, and could only watch in horror. "Ember!" Another fireball was launched and it was hurdling straight towards Chester.

"Eek! Chester, get out of the way!" Shauna cried desperately. Chester, already weak from the last attack, could only brace himself as the fireball engulfed him in flames. Chester cried out in pain while Shauna cried out in horror as her beloved new partner fell over in defeat, scorch marks all over his body and groaning softly in pain. Shauna ran over and instantly cradled her fallen Chespin in her arms, furiously spraying him with a Potion. Guilt suddenly flood into me as I sheepishly walked over to Shauna.

"...Sorry..." I murmured. Shauna looked up at me with hurt in her eyes, making my gut twist into several knots. but then her hurt expression morphed into a smile.

"You don't have to be sorry, that's just how battles work," she said. At that moment, Chester began to stir from being unconscious and looked up at Shauna with an apologetic expression and made some more noises I couldn't really hear. "Oh, don't worry about it, Chester! You put up a good fight! Kat's just too strong, huh?" Chester nodded, before turning towards me and holding up it's paw while smiling.

"Chtwa, epaah htchii!"

"Glad to know you're feeling better, buddy."

"Great battle, you two!" Tierno said as he jogged over to us with Trevor and Calem in tow. "Did you see those moves? Talk about awesome!"

"You just got your Pokémon," Calem added "and it's like you're already in sync with it. Nice tactic on using Chester's slowness to your advantage."

I shrugged nonchalantly as I felt Fennekin climb up on my shoulder. "I probably got lucky s'all. It just...sorta came to me, y'know? I didn't even think it would work myself."

"You should be more confident in yourself. I think you have potential to be a great Trainer," Calem added.

"Oh! That reminds me..." Tierno began to dig through his pockets,only to frown and begin to search through his bag. "Eh? that's odd...what did I do with...?"

"You gave it to me, Tierno." Trevor pulled out an envelope from his pocket before handing it to me. "Tierno's kinda forgetful - I held on to this for him. You should give this to your mom. It's a hand-written letter from Sycamore himself, requesting her permission to let you go on your journey. All of our parents know what we're doing for Sycamore, with the exception of yours. Hand this to her, explain the situation, and if you can, meet us on Route 2. We're going to go through Santalune Forest together."

"Will do," I said, stuffing the letter in my pocket. I told them that I would meet them on Route 2 once my errand was done, and they decided to go on ahead and wait for me. I heard Tierno thanking Trevor for keeping the letter for them as I went back to Route 1 again.

* * *

**E/N:** So, yeah, I had to put the game down after I had got my starter since I downloaded it on launch at midnight. It was around 2 in the morning and I had to go to bed. I also added Fire Emblem in there because Nintendo/Game Freak does some shameless advertising for other games within the game (gameception?). Besides, my character was holding a Pikachu 3DS XL when she got out of bed - what else should she be playing?

I picked Fennekin on my first playthrough, but I recently started a new file on Pokémon Y recently. So here's what I'm gonna do - I'm gonna mix up my team, meaning that my character will have Pokémon from both my X team and my Y team, but the story is going to focus more on Y. I'll explain why this is later on. I'm also not going to follow the storyline word-for-word. It would be too dull and predictable, and the last thing I want to do is bore you all to death.

I don't think I should add romance to this - I don't know where it would fit in, unlike other games like the original Black and White. But if you guys would want to see some slight romance, then I may be able to figure something out. Also, I changed the usage of the Pokedex by combining aspects from both the anime and the game. I was never a completionist - I would rather enjoy the game at my own pace, and only catch Pokémon to feel like I'm actually doing something rather than going around, battling people and collecting badges. But I commend you who are able to complete a Pokedex. Once I get the National Dex, I'm done.

So, how was it? I love getting feedback and criticsim from you guys and it gives me the motivation to keep writing, ya know? Now if you'll excuse me...*grabs my 3DS*


	2. Into The Unkown

**A/N:** I decided that I'm going to go ahead and keep the four other characters from X and Y - I need them for the plot. Besides, I'm not too fond of adding other people's OC's into anything. I'm too worried about butchering their characters somehow. I don't think I would need to add any OC's anyway, for what I'm going to do with the plot.

* * *

It never fails to amaze me how hilariously short Route 1 was here. There weren't any wild Pokémon here either to make the walk a little more exciting. It's just an empty pathway that went to and from Vaniville and Aquacorde. Maybe it was a nice change from the usual Routes but still...at least put _some_thing here to make it no-so boring. Ah well.

Nothing changed when I made it back to Vaniville, besides the fact that there were more people and kids out and going on about their business. Ryder was awake when I came back as well - I introduced him to Fennekin before going in. the two seemed to get along pretty well, considering Fennekin was more than eager to jump on Ryder's back, and they began to talk in their Poké-language. I wish I knew what they were talking about, though. I mean, it would be pretty awesome to talk to Pokémon, wouldn't it? Then again...I did hear about a boy from Unova who could talk to Pokémon . I wonder if that were true or not...?

Anyway, I sorta forgot the reason why I was here, since I was too busy watching Fennekin and Ryder play with each other. I was surprised how well they were able to get along so quickly. Despite how well-mannered he is (most of the time), Ryder acts very territorial towards other Pokémon who try to get to close to my mom or I. He usually chases them off or roars at them until they leave. It was kind of a problem back in Johto since we had a neighbor who had a very curious Meowth that loved to come in our yard and explore. This eventually resulted in a busted fence and a very pissed off neighbor. I often wonder if that was the real reason we had to move in the first place.

"Back already, I see." I managed to turn my attention away from the two Pokémon to see Mom standing in the doorway, with a mug of coffee. I could only guess that she heard Fennekin and Ryder.

"Hi Mom," I said "Got somethin' to show you." The moment I had finished that sentence, Fennekin leaped from Ryder's back and back on to my shoulder.

"Ffhyoo!"

"Ohh, how cute!" she squealed, picking up Fennekin from my shoulder and cuddling her. "Where'd you find it?"

"It was given to me," I explained, taking out her Pokéball. Mom went silent as she looked at me, the Ball, and then back at Fennekin. I then explained that Professor Sycamore has took me in as one of his students, how he gave us a Pokémon, and that he wants me to travel around Kalos to fill in pages of the Pokédex. Once I was done explaining all of that to her, I gave her the letter as a confirmation. Her mood seemed to have changed dramatically when I told her it was from Sycamore himself.

"He sent this to me?" she asked as she tore the envelope open. "I wonder if it's another love letter..."

...Say what? "'Another' love letter?"

Mom suddenly grew flustered and nearly tore the letter in half. "Ah, n-no! I didn't mean-"

"Mom, there were three words in that sentence that shouldn't have been together. 'Another,' 'love' and 'letter,'" I said, placing a hand on my hip. "Is there something going on between you and this Professor?"

"If there was, it's none of your business," she said sternly, reading over the letter. I gave her a look as Fennekin got back on my shoulder. After another minute of reading, Mom nodded and refolded the letter neatly. "I understand now...Well then, Kat my dear! Looks like the move turned out to be a good thing! You've already have a Pokémon, so I can only guess that you accepted Sycamore's request."

I grinned. "You'd be right." Mom smiled again before she walked off and went upstairs to my room. I didn't know what she could have went up there for, so I went into the kitchen and found some Pokémon treats in the cabinet and fed them to Fennekin. I was tempted to eat one of them. The treats themselves looked like a cross between a macaroon and a cupcake, with either frosting, fruit or little chocolate pieces on the top. I heard Pokémon go nuts over these things, and I began to believe it after seeing Fennekin nearly bite my finger off after the first bite. I let her explore the house after that - she tried pouncing on Pepper and ended up missing. I watch them mess around until I saw Mom walk back down, carrying my bag.

"Here. I packed your bag for you," she explained after handing the bag to me "I added another outfit for you as well, just in case something happens to the one you're wearing while you're out."

"Thanks," I said while I strapped it to my shoulder. "I still don't understand how these things work. How can anyone carry so much stuff in these small bags? Did you know you can put bikes and fishing rods in these things? where do they go?"

"You can thank Silph Co. for that," Mom explained "They were able to mimic the storage technology in Pokéballs and the PC Boxes to create a sort of space inside these bags. The items you places in them are converted into a type of energy, and it automatically organizes the item to a specific pocket depending on what it is. That's why you can carry so much in such a small space, if you can understand that. Honestly, it's very complicated to explain."

"I can see that, but I see what you mean." I said, going through each pocket just to see for myself. I mean, really, if they were able to invent a device to store powerful creatures into a small ball, I'll believe that they were able to do the same for your bags. Seriously, I could never understand why you could fit so much stuff in them while it kept it shape, or even seem heavy. I should have known Silph would be the ones responsible for creating something so convenient for Trainers. "I guess I'll be off, then."

"Hm...I knew this day was coming," Mom said softly "and yet, it will still hurt to see you go."

Please don't cry..."Hey, you know I'll always come back to visit. Besides, we can use our Holo Casters to keep in touch."

"True..." Mom grew silent as she looked over at Fennekin and Pepper, who were chasing each other around the couch. "How come you didn't give Fennekin a nickname?"

"I honestly didn't think about that," I murmured, only to frown slightly when I saw Mom packed that red and black dress. She knows I hate the damn thing - why put it in here?

"You gave Ryder and Pepper their names," she went on "I thought you would do the same for Fennekin." I finally tore my eyes from my bag and looked over at my partner, who was sniffing around the living room while Pepper followed her. I considered what kind of nickname I could give her - I didn't want to be too obvious and boring and name her something like Blaze or something like that. From what I've seen, she's pretty friendly and energetic, and pretty strong in battle. She should be given a name that reflects her strength and gentleness. But something about that orange in her eyes and ear fur that stood out to me for some reason. It...it kinda reminded me of a girl in this Pixar movie I watched once, about a Scottish girl with messy orange hair in medieval times...Wasn't her name...

"Merida." Fennekin's ears twitched as she turned towards me, then happily bounded over to my side. I smiled as I rubbed behind her ears.

"You named her after the girl in _Brave_?" Mom asked.

"Her orange fur reminded me of her," I said, picking up the little fox.

"I think it fits, oddly enough," Mom laughed. Shen then told me that she sent some spending money to my account, just so I won't have to leave without any money to my name. I could earn more if I defeat other Trainers along the way, so I should be fine for right now. We walked to the front door, and we hugged each other goodbye when I stepped outside. I gave Ryder my granola bar and said my farewells to him, and he gave me a quick nuzzle. I was gonna miss Ryder - wish i could take him with me. we've known each other since the day I was born, and we had a close bond. we've never been apart from each other for a long period of time before...I wonder if he'll be okay when I leave.

I double checked to make sure I had everything on me before I headed back to the gate before heading to the gate, and I was back on Route 1 and on my way to Aquacorde yet again.

. . .

"Hey! Li'l K! Over here!" I had made it through Aquacorde and arrived on Route 2 after crossing the bridge. Calem and Shauna were standing in front of a patch of small grass with their respective partners, Tierno was trying to convince a Corphish (I guess it was his) to get out of the river, and Trevor was sitting on a rock, writing down notes from his Pokédex. Everyone stopped what they were doing once they realized I had arrived, and their attention was on me.

"I hope I'm not late," I said as I walked over. Chester waved at Merida, who hopped off my shoulder to go say hi. They must have been friends when they were being raised by Sycamore. I couldn't say the same for Froakie, though. He just seemed indifferent most of the time.

"You're just in time, actually," Calem said "So I guess your mom let you go?"

"Obviously. I wouldn't be out here if she didn't y'know."

"Calem's gonna teach us how to catch Pokémon!" Shauna exclaimed "Wanna join me? He could teach us both!"

"Calem's Mom and Dad are Veteran Trainers," Tierno explained as he walked over "so they taught a lot of stuff about catching and raising Pokémon to him. I bet you'll be just as good as them, right Calem?"

"My parents may be good, but it has nothing to do with me," Calem said with a slight edge in his voice "I can find my own strength. I'm just utilizing what they taught me." It seemed like he didn't want to talk about his parents, or maybe he was tired of being labelled because of his parents' success. It was probably the latter, but I could sympathize on that since I knew how he felt. Regardless of what the reason was, I didn't pry; Unless he wants to tell us, it's none of our business.

"I already know how to catch Pokémon," I said "Dad taught me when I was younger, so I remember how."

"I guess that makes things easier," Calem laughed a bit "Okay then. Shauna, watch carefully, okay?"

"Okay, whatever, just hurry up! I wanna catch a lot of cute Pokémon and become their friends!" I don't think Shauna would pay attention anyway - she was too busy bouncing around giddily. Calem rolled his eyes but entered the patch of grass anyway. Froakie assisted in the search and they soon encountered a gray and brown rabbit Pokémon called a Bunnelby (thank you Pokedex). Calem instructed Froakie to use a weaker Bubble to weaken it, and the blue frog was more than happy to blow bubbles at it. I didn't have any real reason to watch, so I started looking for some twigs that may have been lying around. I only found two on the ground and grass, so I went over to a nearby tree and started breaking off the skinnier branches and putting them in a small Ziploc bag I got from home.

"What'cha doin' Li'l K?" Shauna came over and was looking at the bag of twigs curiously. I guess Calem's live presentation on Pokémon capture was over.

"What's with the new nickname?" was my reply.

"We have this thing to give each other nicknames since we're good friends," Tierno explained "and since you're now a member of the gang, we decided on giving you a nickname."

"Incidentally," Trevor spoke up, though he was still sitting on his rock "Shauna was the one who dubbed you 'Li'l K' shortly after you left. I tried to convince her to wait until you came back to see if you wanted one but...there's no stopping her."

"Oh c'mon! Li'l K is the perfect nickname for her!" Shauna defended, then gave me a pleading look to make sure she wasn't in trouble. I just shrugged - I honestly didn't care about having a nickname or not. Then again, I never had anyone give me a nickname, let alone friends. Oh, wait...I never had any friends. No "real" friends anyway. It...it actually felt good, the more I thought about it. I just met these guys hours ago, and yet they so quick in accepting me into their group. A nickname may not be seen as important, but it was to me. It meant that I finally found a group of people who were kind enough to take in a stranger into their ranks. I felt a sense of belonging, all of a sudden - a certain warmness that lets you know you were surrounded by good people you know you could depend on. I only felt this way when I'm around my parents, never complete strangers. Then again, we weren't strangers anymore...We were friends.

"I don't see what's wrong with it," I shrugged, unable to contain the smile growing on my face. "It's cute. I like it."

"See? Seeeeee? I told you!" Shauna cried triumphantly at Trevor.

The boy just gave her a look before putting away his notebook and finally getting up from that rock. "Santalune Forest is straight ahead. So if you guys are all ready to go..."

"I'm ready," Calem nodded.

"Me too~!" Shauna sang.

"Me three!" Tierno pumped a fist.

"Let's g-"

_"Heeeeey! Waaaaaait!"_ A young boy wearing a blue hoodie and beige shorts came running over to us. We all looked at the kid with confusion as he caught his breath, then he stood up straight and looked directly in my direction. "You! You're the girl I saw win that battle in Aquacorde! You looked strong then, so I want to see just how strong you are myself! Please battle me!"

I blinked as I looked back at the gang, then the kid, then back at my friends. I really wanted to go into with them, but I didn't want to turn down a challenge either. I wanted to train Merida a little anyway, but I didn't want to hold everyone else up. I gave my friends an apologetic and sheepish look. "Sorry guys...but I can't turn down a battle."

"Hey, it's totally fine, Li'l K!" Shauna said "We can wait, can't we guys?"

"I actually want to see this battle," Calem hummed "If you could easily beat Shauna before, I'm curious on how you'll do against him."

Trevor suddenly lowered his head towards ground, looking a bit guilty. "I...I really want to see the distribution of the Pokémon in the Forest and compare it to that of this Route...b-but I don't-"

"Trevor, it's fine," I said, giving him a reassuring smile "If you wanna go in, it would be wrong of me to hold you back. Just be safe in there, alright?" Trevor looked back up at me, his eyes clearly saying "thank you" over a million times. He promised that he would stay as close to the entrance as possible so we could wait until the battle was over. Tierno then offered to go with him just to keep an eye on him - there are a lot of Bug types that could easily poison him in there, and the last thing we needed was for him to run into any trouble while we weren't there. I told them we would be there soon before they took off, so Merida and I took our positions on the opposite side of the kid while Calem and Shauna sat on the sidelines as spectators.

"Ready for another round, Merida?" I asked.

Merida nodded in my direction. "Niieeh-ahrk!"

The boy eagerly pulled out a Pokeball from his belt and tossed it with gusto. "Let's go, Ziggy!"

. . .

"Huh. Weird."

Blue looked up from her handheld computer and gave a quizzical look to the Green-haired woman through her shades. "What's weird?"

"Well, you know we're supposed to find both of them right?" she asked.

Blue went on to typing some complicated mess of calculations and formulas into the handheld. "Yeah?"

"And you know how we found the hidden areas where they're supposed to be, right?"

"Yeah. And?"

"I just got a call from, like, three or four of our guys in the field. They said they're not there."

Blue nearly dropped her computer as the news hit her like a Mamoswine using a full powered Take Down. "What do you mean 'they're not there'?! All of that research and calculations were correct, so they should just be sitting there in an inanimate state! They couldn't have walked off and left - that's not possible!"

"Or is it?" Blue furrowed her brow and poked out her blue lip, but said nothing. "They could've woken up, y'know. Yes, our research has given us enough clues, and yes, our calculations were and still correct. But you - and most likely everyone else - forgot something. Until they are in our possession, we don't have any control over them...nor do we have any control over time."

"Okay, what the hell," Blue groaned with obvious impatience "What the time have to do with this? If we can't present those two valuable assets to our project, we'll be chewed out and then some if he finds out!"

"Think...remember the legend...and remember the parts of said legend that were erased from history. The two tribes that stood by them...that old prophecy that was lost in time, that no one but a select few know about. The two Chosen Ones...remember?"

A faint blue glow emanated from Blue's visor, before realization hit her, causing her to promptly facepalm. "Ohhh! Now I remember." Her colleague rolled her eyes, but you couldn't tell since her eyes were completely hidden behind her green shades. "So, wait, if they're animated because of them, how will we be able to track them down?"

"We can't." Blue visor opened her mouth to protest, but a curt wave of Green's hand stopped her. "However, they could prove to be an important asset. Think...if our - well, MY hypothesis is correct, if they're awake because of the Chosen Ones, then they could be an important asset to our project. If we managed to find those who may be Chosen, then we'll find them, and we can finally make our dreams come true. Still..." Green folded her arms and looked up at the screen before her. An image of what looked like an old and worn page from a tome, with illegible text and various pictures of stones and shapes of possible Pokémon. More numbers, formulas and equations covered the rest of the screen; there was even a scan in process, breaking down the runes written on the page until it was legible. "Tracking down both parties won't be easy. And by the looks of it, the project will be delayed for a few months, if not longer."

"Great," Blue sighed, before pulling out a device that looked like a Holo Caster. "And there's nothing we can do about it, can we?"

"Nope."

"Dammit. Fine...I'll inform him about this. Hopefully he will be able to see what's going on and be able to allow us to adjust a few things."

"Wait, before you contact him," Green said, pulling out her Holo Caster "put it on a three-way so I can help explain."

"If we get in trouble, I'm blaming you."

"Shut up."

. . .

Ziggy let out a final yelp before before collapsing to the ground in defeat. Merida had a few scratches on her, but she was holding up pretty well. The kid's Zigzagoon turned out to be a bit of a challenge compared to Chester. It was quicker, and moved in an erratic zigzag fashion that made it a little more difficult to land a hit. Luckily, Merida and I were able to adapt, and I used another strategy to out-predict Ziggy's movements and take him down. Even so, Ziggy was able to hit Merida at least once or twice, but she was strong enough not to let that slow her down. This battle was just a little longer than my battle with Shauna, but the end result remained the same.

"Aww man, I guess you are strong," Austin (the kid) pouted as he returned Ziggy back into his Pokéball. I heard my Holo Caster beeping in my bag, letting me know that the victory money was transferred into my account. "Hey, I had fun though! I gotta get Ziggy healed, so see ya!" And with that, Austin took off, going back to Aquacorde Town to have his fallen partner revived. I sprayed a Potion on Merida's wounds while Calem and Shauna congratulated me on winning the match.

"If you keep this up, you'll be unstoppable, Li'l K!" Shauna gushed.

"I doubt that," I laughed "I just got lucky and won two battles. Big deal."

"I don't think that's luck," Calem observed as we headed towards the Forest's entrance. "I can tell, you have the skill and the potential to be a good Trainer. You should keep up this pace and keep getting better."

I shrugged again. "Eh, I might." The sound of running water soon died down as we entered Santalune Forest. Large trees and tall grass was everywhere, patches of sunlight managed to pierce through the canopies, giving us a light source to help us navigate through it. The singing of bird Pokémon could be heard everywhere, a soft breeze caressed the leaves and grass gently, causing a light rustle to emanate from them. The atmosphere here was tranquil and peaceful, with the beauty of nature to boot, causing a sense of inner peace to wash through my entire being. Unfortunately, the tranquility didn't last long when Tierno's loud voice echoed through the three, urging us to come along. We ultimately decided to traverse the forest at our own pace, each of us breaking off with a partner or on their own to explore the forest the way they want to. Shauna and I decided to stick together until we reached the exit, so we let Chester and Merida play while we walked. I wanted to train a little and fill up more pages to the Pokédex while I was in here, so I battled every Pokémon that attempted to attack as we explored. Shauna healed up our Pokemon whenever they were hurt, so the hike went by smoother. There were a lot a dropped items on the ground too - I found two Potions and an Antidote in the grass and kept for obvious reason.

"You know what?" Shauna randomly said after Merida sent a Weedle scuttling back into the bush "I wanna catch a Pikachu!"

"There are Pikachu in this forest?" I asked while feeding Merida a twig.

"Well, yeah," Shauna replied "at least, that's what Trevor told me. You can find them here, but they're kinda hard to find in the wild. I would LOVE to have one though..."

"I'm sure you'll find one if you look hard enough." Shauna didn't say anything, but watched me feed another twig to Merida. She tilted her head and furrowed her brow, as if she was trying to figure out what I was doing.

"Why are you feeding her sticks?" she asked "Isn't that, like, unhealthy for her?"

"No actually," I explained "Fennekin eat twigs for energy, and I'm guessing that energy is used for fuel in the pit near it's stomach that stores what it needs to use its fire-based attacks."

"Wow! I didn't know that! You must be really smart, Kat~!"

I scratched the back of my head and laughed nervously. "I uh...I actually learned that from the Pokédex said. I'm going to keep collecting a few of these whenever I can so Merida can have her fuel. I want to make sure I raise my Pokémon correctly." Shauna grew a thoughtful expression as she looked down at Chester, who was trying to reach a berry from a tree. Shauna picked the berry and gave it to him, before she took out her Pokédex and began to look through it. I could only guess that she started to think about properly raising Chester, so she had to look up more information on him. I decided I was gonna let her do that while I looked through some more grass to find any Pokémon I may have missed. Despite looking like an intimidating maze, Santalune Forest was pretty linear, so it was nearly impossible for us to get separated. If one of us went too far or took another turn, we would end up finding each other sooner or later. I caught up to Tierno and Trevor; Tierno was battling against another kid while Trevor searched through some nearby grass. He ended up being chased out of the grass by a Pansear though, as hilarious as that sounds. Calem and Froakie managed to scare it off though, it everything turned out okay...with the exception of Tierno, since he lost the battle. Poor him.

I began to search in that area of grass Trevor was in to hopefully find the other two elemental monkeys to record in my Pokédex. Unfortunately, I couldn't find the other two or the Pansear that ran off in this direction, so I gave up and started looking for other Pokémon instead.

"Fine anything, Merida?" I asked the fox. No reply. "Merida?"

"Fenneh-keee~" Merida poked her head up from the grass and barked at me again, then turned towards one of the trees while looking in my direction. She was motioning for me to follow, so I approached the area that seemed to have caught her attention. When I got close, I noticed that there was a little hole near the roots of the tree. Merida barked at the hole, and a yellow head peeked out from the hole seconds later. The hole was actually a den belonging to a Pikachu - a Pikachu that didn't seem be timid of humans like most others are.

"Pika-pi!" he squeaked at us.

"Cute," I cooed, getting Pikachu's entry. "Is this a friend of yours, Merida?"

She nodded. "Aahrf!"

I started thinking about catching the little guy (it was actually a girl), then remembered how much Shauna wanted to catch one. I then considered catching it myself and then giving it to her as a gift, but what if Pikachu didn't want to? What if it wanted to be on my team rather than Shauna's because it was Merida's friend? It would be wrong of me to just take the poor thing from its home and do whatever I wanted with her against her will. But if I could just talk to her and explain the situation to her, would she understand and consider it? If it's one thing Mom and Dad always taught it, it was to always try and become friends with Pokémon before catching it. I was taught that the one of the reasons why wild Pokémon attacked you when you're traveling is because they want to be caught themselves. They're envious of Pokémon who have Trainers that will love and take care of them, and take them to places far away from their natural homes and see things they would have never saw if they stayed in their habitats. A Pokémon has just as many feelings and thoughts as any other human, and they should be treated the same way. They're more than just pets or battle partners - they're our friends, our family. They will always be there for you when you can no longer rely on humans, and their loyalty knows no bounds. They're amazing creatures indeed...it's just a shame that most people abuse and take advantage of them. Not me, though - I'm going to be sure that I be the very opposite of those scum.

"Merida, can you help me out for a sec?" I asked "I'm not entirely sure if Pikachu will understand me, so translate them for me, 'kay?" Merida barked an nodded again. "Alright. So...Pikachu, I have a friend who really, really wants to be your friend and accompany her on a journey. You see, we're traveling around Kalos to help a mentor of ours, and it kinda requires us to catch other Pokémon too. But we're going to go to so many places far beyond this forest, and my friend would love it if you went with her and her Chespin. So...whaddya say? Wanna meet her?" Merida repeated my words to Pikachu in their native Poke-speak just in case Pikachu couldn't understand some things that I said. I sat there and waited while the two negotiated, listening to them talk and make several body movements. Eventually, Pikachu nodded and Merida confirmed that Pikachu wanted to follow. "Alright! She shouldn't be too far..." I offered to carry Pikachu in case she didn't want to walk, but she declined, wanting to do it herself. I had no objections to that and began to lead her to the energetic teen. Merida managed to find a scent trail that lead us directly to her. Calem was with her when we got there - he was spraying an Paralyze Heal on Chester's body. They must have had some bad luck with a Scatterbug or Caterpie. They noticed me walk over, and Calem explained that Shauna tried to catch Scatterbug, but it was in a particularly bad mood and used Stun Spore before fleeing.

"It was nothing serious, but I was glad I was around when it happened," Calem added "How are you holding up, Kat?"

"I managed to fill a few pages, and trained Merida a little," I explained "but I'm glad I ran into you guys." I looked at Shauna and motioned at Pikachu. "I have someone who wants to meet you." I nodded at Pikachu to go forward, and the little electric mouse approached Shauna with little fear. Shauna's eyes grew as big as dinner plates as she stared at the Pokémon with disbelief.

"You...you mean it?" she asked.

"I didn't catch her," I told her "I just told her that you wanted to be her friend, and she decided that she wanted to meet you."

"Go on, Shauna," Calem urged "The key to catching Pokémon is becoming friends with it first. Talk to it - introduce yourself."

"Um...o-okay...gosh, this is stressful! Um..." Shauna knelt down until she was at eye-level with Pikachu. "M-my name's Shauna, and this is my partner, Chester."

Chester waved at Pikachu and smiled, revealing those buck teeth of his. "Chessiii!"

"You see, Chester and I are on a journey for Professor Sycamore to complete a Pokedex, but I really want to become friends with a lot of Pokémon and share memories with them as we travel together! And...and I think we will share some reeeeeally cool memories together Pikachu. S-so...do you want to come with me?" Pikachu looked up at Shauna with a thoughtful expression on her face. She turned towards Chester, who said something to her in Poke-speak and made several movements with his paws. After Chester was done sharing his side of the story, Pikachu glanced at them both, before smiling and stood by Shauna while looking up at her.

"Pika, pika-chuu!"

Shauna looked like she was about to explode from happiness. "You mean it? YAAAAAY!" She picked up Pikachu from the ground and twirled around, but Pikachu was laughing before it leaped from her arms and landed on her shoulder. "We're going to be the bestest friends, Pikachu! Ooh, you should have a nickname too! Let's see...you're a girl...and an electric type...I know! I I'm going to name you Electra! Not only does it sound strong, but it's cute too! Just like yoooou~!"

I couldn't help but to smile at the scene before me. Not only was Shauna happy, but Pikachu looked just as happy to be with her. Calem stood next to me and watched them for a while, before giving me a "you did good" look. We allowed Shauna to have her one-girl celebration before we continued on. Calem and I battled some other Trainers who were in the forest, but they weren't much of a challenge. I manged to find the three elemental monkeys and added their entries into my Pokedex, which was an added bonus for me. After another hour or so, we finally reached the end of the forest. Calem, Shauna and I were the first to make it there, so we had to wait for Trevor and Tierno to catch up. Tierno started going on about how awesome Pokémon's moves were, and Trevor commented that Tierno had nothing else better to talk about but his dance moves and the moves Pokemon use.

"Well, we're at the end," Calem said "Let's exit the forest together."

"That sounds like fun~!" Shauna sang. "Huh? Hey...you okay Li'l K?"

I was staring intently back at the forest trail, having a feeling of deja vu for some reason. Merida tapped my forehead, snapping me out of my train of thought and back int reality. "Huh?"

"You kinda spaced out there for a sec," Tierno asked "What's up? You okay?"

I nodded. "Yeah...it's just, the layout of the forest reminds me of somewhere I've been before s'all." I didn't speak more on the matter, nor did anyone pry about it. We left the forest behind and came upon Route 3; evening was beginning to creep up on us as the blue sky began to turn into a bright orange. We could clearly see Santalune City dead ahead, so it was just a short walk from here to the city. A feeling of relief washed through me - I was having a good start to the journey so far, but it was still a very long road ahead. At least I had friends along for the ride.

"So, what's everyone going to do now?" Shauna asked.

"I think I'm going to do some more research," Trevor said "The distribution of Pokémon out here should vary from the Pokémon in the forest, even if it's just a little bit. I want to get my notes done before I go into the city."

"I think I'm gonna practice some dance moves with Rodney," Tierno said "If I want to make the best Pokémon dance team, I gotta get started early! I wanna see all the moves Pokémon can learn - it'd be so cool!"

Wow. I'm starting to see what Trevor meant. "What about you, Shauna?"

"I'm going straight to Santalune!" she exclaimed "I wanna show my mom that I caught a Pikachu! And then I'm going to spend some time with them once I check in at the Pokémon Center!"

"I'm going to challenge the Gym there," Calem said "Kat probably knows this already, but Trainers test their skill by challenging the Gym Leaders all around the region and collect their badges. I intend on going to the Pokémon League later on."

Trevor turned towards me. "What about you, Kat?"

I shrugged while looking over the Route. "I think I'll get in a little more training and record more Pokémon before going to Santalune," I explained "I think I might challenge the Gym there as well, but I'm not entirely sure. But if I decide to, I would rather prepare Merida and I before going in. You can never be too prepared, y'know."

"I should probably do the same," Calem nodded, looking over at Froakie. "The Gym Leader in Santalune uses Bug types. It will probably be best if I catch a Flying type in case Genji can't handle it on his own." Genji gave Calem a sort of annoyed look before muttering something, as if he were saying "I can handle it myself." We walked a little further into Route 3 before we all broke up and went our merry way. Shauna went straight to Santalune like she said she would, Trevor was going through the grass, taking his notes as usual and Tierno was doing some kind of crazy dance with Rodney (who was his Corphish). Merida and I were going through some more grass when we were approached by Calem and Genji.

"Hey, Kat," he asked "mind if we accompany you two until we reach Santalune?"

"Sure," I said "I could use some company." Calem and I battled some wild Pokémon in the grass, and some more kid Trainers that were along the Route as well. I couldn't help but to notice that there was an abundance of school kids all over the Route, so I had to guess that there had to be a school of some sort in Santalune. I would have to check it out when we got there just to be sure. I don't know how long Calem and I stayed out there, but when I saw Tierno and Trevor head towards the city, I noticed that the sun was just about gone and night time was kicking in.

"We should get going," I said "it's getting late."

"Yeah, you're right," Calem agreed. The two of us stayed together as we headed north towards Santalune. The Trainers who were out here were also going home, though some of the older kids insisted on staying put. "Hey, mind if I ask you something?"

I gave Merida another twig while she rode on my shoulder again. "Sure. What is it?"

"The region you came from, what was it like?"

"Oh, Johto? It was great," I explained "My Mom was originally from Kanto, but moved to Johto shortly after she began her career as a Rhyhorn Racer. She met Dad after winning the Major Cup, and they hit it off pretty quickly. We lived in Ecruteak City for most of my life until Mom won the Nationals a year ago. Anyway, Johto was a beautiful place, but it was nothing compared to Ecruteak. It was just bathed in history and a mysterious past, but the tranquility there was amazing. The main attractions there were the Pokémon Gym and the two Towers in the East and West.. There's a legend for both of them; both towers are said to be the nesting place for two Legendary bird Pokémon. However, the tower in the west burned down in a mysterious fire, causing the Legendary silvery Pokémon to flee. It is also said that three other Pokémon perished in the fire, but the Legendary in the east tower had them reborn into the three Legendary Beasts of fire, water and lightning. They are said to be in a deep sleep in the Burned Tower, but no one's been able to confirm that to be true. The tower in the east, also known as the Tin Tower, still stands, and is said to be the resting place of the Legendary rainbow bird Pokémon. There are more legends about those Pokémon and a few more, but I don't want to bore you."

Calem chuckled. "Bore me? That was far from boring, Kat. That sounds like a pretty interesting legend, though."

"It does doesn't it?" I added "I remember the Pokémon's name though. Ecruteak has a strong belief towards the rainbow Pokemon - who is called Ho-oh, by the way. There's a practice where young Trainers try to prove themselves to make Ho-oh appear. It's said that anyone who shows true kindness and purity of heart are allowed to gain approval by Ho-oh. The Tin Tower is guarded by the Kimono Girls, so if you can prove yourself to them, then they will give you access into the Tin Tower. But you also need the Badge from the Gym as well, since the Gym Leader is in charge of guarding the tower as well. I never could get approved, since I never became a Trainer. And even though we live so close to where Ho-oh rests, I've never seen it in my time of living there."

We passed through the gate to Santalune, the streets were mostly empty with the exception of a few adults and older Trainers walking around. Street lamps illuminated the sidewalks and streets, a soft wind brushed over the many flower beds in the city, causing them to wave slightly in the breeze.

"I wonder what those Pokémon are like," Calem murmured to himself "To live so close to where a Legendary lives...I bet it was mystifying."

"In a way, yeah," I nodded, before hearing Merida yawn softly in my ear "You could easily see the Tower from my house, so I would spend hours looking at it whenever I had the chance. I wonder how everyone's doing back in Ecruteak..." Calem didn't say anything as we walked to the Pokémon Center. There was a hotel there, but the Center's services are free, including getting a room and staying there for the night. Shauna, Tierno and Trevor were already waiting for us when we got there, sitting at one of the tables while Tierno stuffed his face with food. I had Merida healed up and checked out while Calem did the same for Genji before we went ahead and got our rooms for the night while we waited. We ate dinner once we got our Pokémon back, and we spent the majority of the night talking amongst ourselves before turning in. Shauna and I shared a room while the boys had a room next door, but we had to share a bathroom in between the two rooms, causing a bit of a fight about who would be using the shower first. I decided to wait until tomorrow morning to shower, and changed into a t-shirt two sizes larger than me and some shorts before calling Mom via Holo Caster.

"You made it to Santalune City pretty quick," she noted "How are you doing? Where are you now?"

"I'm in the Pokémon Center getting ready for bed," I told her "I'm sharing a room with Shauna." Said girl was still fussing at the boys in the background. I hope they get that resolved before I go to bed.

"That's good to hear," she said with relief in her voice "I told your father that you had started your journey today. You should have seen him - he was a nervous wreck!"

I had to shake my head at that. Dad always worried about his little princess. "Tell him I made it to Santalune just fine. The last thing we need is for him to make a special trip here to check on me."

Mom laughed. "I hear that! Well, I'll let you go and get some rest. Call me later, okay?"

"Will do. Tell Ryder and Pepper I said hi!" I switched off the Holo Caster and put it on the nightstand next to me. I watched Chester, Electra and Merida play with a toy ball Shauna bought from the Mart. I checked the clock and saw that it was only 10:28pm, but I felt exhausted for some reason. I was in good shape, but I guess all the excitement from today had worn me our considerably. I was too tired to watch the TV in the room, so I climbed under the covers and and just lied there, letting sleep take over. Shauna and the boys finally gotten that shower situation under control, but I heard someone in there using it (I assumed it was Shauna since the room was quiet aside from our Pokémon playing). I felt Merida hop into bed and buried herself under my arm. I gave her a quick pat before I finally drifted off, feeling reassured by my partner's presence. Then I heard Shauna's loud and obnoxious signing coming from the bathroom, keeping me awake.

This was going to be a long night...

* * *

**E/N:** You guys know that Santalune Forest has the same layout as Viridian forest, right? I noticed that on my first playthrough.

My Fennekin was a female when I chose her in the game, and I really did name her Merida. I had a Vivillon at this point in the game too, but she won't be appearing in the story, unfortunately. I had a bad habit of over-training my team, and by the time I had challenged the Gym, Fennekin had already evolved into Braixen.

I added the little detail about the "separate space" in the bags being a Silph development to make it easier on Trainers. Honestly, how else will you be able to fit all of that stuff in those tiny things like you can in the game? I thought it would make sense that the bags would have technology similar to that of Pokéballs, seeing that they can hold any size Pokémon in them comfortably. Considering the kind of technology they have in the Pokémon world, I would believe they would do something like this.

I had my character originally be from Johto because the first Pokémon game I ever played was the original Silver for the GameBoy and GameBoy Color. I had played Red and Yellow afterwards, but Silver holds a special place in my heart because it was a part of my childhood, and it was what got me into Pokémon in the first place.

Wow, I'm surprised at the positive feedback I've gotten when I first published this. I'm really glad you guys enjoy this - I honestly didn't believe no one would consider this story interesting. But I have an idea for the plot that will slowly begin to reveal itself later on, I promise.

Jeez...8,000+ words. That's the most I've done in one setting.


	3. Overcoming A Trial

**A/N:** I decided that I'm going to go ahead and keep the four other characters from X and Y - I need them for the plot. Besides, I'm not too fond of adding other people's OC's into anything. I'm too worried about butchering their characters somehow. I don't think I would need to add any OC's anyway, for what I'm going to do with the plot.

By the way, is it just me or does Calem/Serena seem to be like, the most inanimate and generic characters in the game? I mean, if you compare them to Shauna, Tierno and Trevor, they don't really seem to have too much of a personality. I mean, at least the three of them have a little character development during the game. Ah well. I'm just rambling.

* * *

Darkness covered more than half of the city in a blanket, casting an eerie feel throughout the metal jungle. City workers scrambled around like bees, doing their best to calm the citizens as well as trying to rectify the situation. No one knows what cause the sudden black out, but many believer it has something to do with the Kalos Power Plant just outside the city walls. Even though the power shut off just an hour ago, the citizens were acting as though it has been cut off for weeks. It's funny how much humans rely on something for so long, and become so clueless and lost when it's suddenly taken from them. Nothing's really changed since 3,000 years, huh...

A soft breeze wafted through him, causing his scarf to dance whimsically just a bit before falling back lifelessly on his back. The summer air was pleasantly warm, even if his long red coat blocked most of the outside air. He casted his gaze down on the city, slightly amused by all of the commotion down below. He stood on the edge of the building, completely unphased at the intimidating height. If he fell, he could easily land on his feet, or simply fly off. But the amount of people in this place and the crowded buildings would make him stick out like a sore thumb. It was bad enough those other group of idiots had found his resting place - the last thing he needed was to draw attention to himself. Arceus forbid if he did - he'd never hear the end of it from _her_. Ugh.

He walked along the edge smoothly, keeping his piercing blue eyes on every human that was out in the streets. They were close...but not close enough. He could feel the aura of those who are a part of the bloodline, but they were not here. He had searched through the entire city, but it's almost like they haven't moved yet, where ever they are. Perhaps they weren't here and in another location? It would explain why he couldn't feel anything when he got close to the other humans below. They had to be in another town, or one before this one. Regardless of what it was, he'd have to find them - one of them at least.

"I thought I would find you here."

Oh _great_. He turned to see another "human" - her light blue hair cascaded down her shoulder and back like a silky waterfall, her short, fitted blue dress was complimented with her black leggings and pale blue shoes. Her soft deep blue eyes stared sternly at the other, though he didn't seem to care less.

"Why do you insist on monitoring my every move?" he muttered.

The woman took a couple of steps towards him. "You know I can't completely leave you on your own."

"Our powers are limited and we have not fully slept. I can do no more than what you can."

"But I know you haven't changed since our last encounter. We can't afford any mistakes, not after we were almost caught." The woman stood next to him, but kept her distance away from the edge. Unlike him, she wasn't as reckless and preferred to be more careful in the presence of humans. "I know you're looking for them."

"Oh really?" he asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm "What made you figure that out? I mean, it's not it's obvious or anything." The woman scowled and opened her mouth to say something, but was quickly cut off. "Don't play innocent. You're after the same thing. Besides, I only need to find one of them"

"And what will you do when you do find the human?" she pressed.

Another breeze wafted through him, causing his hair to stick out more than it already was. "It all depends on what the human wants to do. Whether it is to wipe all life clean in the fires of destruction or offer its soul to save these creatures, it all falls on what they want to do." He then turned towards her, a mischievous glint clear in his eyes. "And I trust you will do the same for yours, hmm?"

"I don't like it," she said quickly, her gaze now on the city "To put the fate of everything that exists in this world into the hands of Arceus-knows who...We could be sending the very world we know into perpetual doom."

"It's either this or being a slave to those morons," he said with a shrug "and I highly doubt you would want those silly humans to dirty those pretty little hooves of yours, would you?"

"You hush!" the woman growled "You don't know who might be listening! We are always in danger of being discovered and you know that!"

The man scoffed. "Please. If that were the case, we would've been discovered long ago. We Legendaries have walked with these humans since time began and they never found it out. Only when we make our presence known is when we get caught."

"You're the one to talk," the woman grinned "At least I wasn't a fool and got a poor woman knocked up more than three millenniums ago. THAT didn't go too well, now did it?"

The other's face suddenly turned redder than his coat as a blush appeared on his face. He muttered a gruff "shut up" before turning his attention back to the city. The woman giggled, feeling satisfied that she was able to annoy her darker counterpart to some degree. Even so, it didn't really help the situation that they had somehow gotten themselves into. The fact that they were technically on the from their pursuers made their search considerably more difficult to complete. And the amount of time they had left was still undecided - they either had to act fast or be patient and wait, but what was the real issue were the possible outcomes that would come from this. She knew she wasn't going to get any cooperation from her counterpart - not after what happened earlier, at least. She sighed before turning and walking back to the door she had come entered the roof from. It looked like she was going to be on her own for a while...

. . .

I had forgotten that I was no longer at home until I felt Merida licking at my face until I woke up. I had almost missed Pepper's chirping and pecking, but Merida's method was less annoying and didn't cause me any physical pain.

"Hey girl," I murmured, softly petting her. Her soft fur felt good against my fingers, and the warmness that emanated from her body was pleasant too. she yipped at me before hopping off the bed and went went back over to Chester and Electra in the middle of the room. I yawned as I sat up in bed, suddenly feeling cold when I drew the duvets off my body. Shauna was on the other side of the room, still in her pajamas and standing in front of a mirror brushing her hair. She heard me stirring and greeted me with that bright smile of hers.

"Good morning, Li'l K~!" she sang "Are you joining us for breakfast?"

"Yeah," I said getting up and stretching "The boys up yet?"

"Tierno and Trevor are," she replied "Calem already left."

I frowned. "Why did he leave so early?"

"It's almost 9 o'clock, Li'l K," she then added "He had a morning match with the Gym Leader, so he got up earlier than the rest of us to get in some extra training before going to the Gym. But that's Calem for you - he'll be alright."

That did sound like something Calem would do. He seemed pretty psyched about challenging the Gym, even if he tried to hide it. I got out of bed and headed straight for the bathroom. I showered, brushed my teeth and fixed up my hair (Shauna let me borrow her hairdryer since I didn't have mine) before getting dressed. I groomed Merida while I waited for Shauna to get dressed - we were going to explore the city until we meet up again and hang out as a group.

"We don't have to leave right away - we can stay for a few days before we have to leave for the next city," Shauna explained. We were out eating at one of the cafes on a hill that overlooked the rest of the city and a perfect view of the Roselia fountain to boot. "But we do have to meet up with the Professor in Lumoise City, which happens to be the next city over, and the largest in Kalos."

Merida was pawing at my leg, trying to get some of my food while whining a little. I gave her a piece of bacon. "Why do we have to meet up with him? He already gave us our Pokémon and our assignment to fill up the Pokédex."

"I think he wants to evaluate our progress in person. Besides, he hasn't met you yet, and we have to pass through Lumiose City anyway if we want to continue our journey."

"Okay, I can kinda see that reasoning," I murmured. "So, where did you want to go today? We sorta have most of the day to ourselves until we meet up with the guys later."

"I want to go check out the Trainer's School," Shauna said as she fed Chester some fruit "I want to become a good Trainer like you and Calem. I heard they're allowing Trainers to take day courses for the summer since school's out. I don't know a lot about Pokémon like you guys do, so I should study up before we leave."

"You probably won't have time to go today," I noted as Merida hopped into my lap "We promised we would all hang out when Calem comes back from his match, remember?"

Shauna sighed and pouted. "You're right...but hey! I would rather spend time with my friends than go to school anyway! I think I'll go tomorrow."

"I might go with you." Merida managed to swipe another piece of bacon, but I didn't care. "Not sure if I really need to, though. Mom and Dad made sure I went to the best school back in Ecruteak, so I was fed knowledge about Pokémon since I was like, four years old, I think. But I could use some pointers on how to properly raise Merida. I'm not familiar with most of the Pokémon here in this region."

"You probably don't need it," Shauna said with genuine honesty "We became rookies at the same time, but you're almost on the same level as Calem when it comes to skill! It would TOTALLY awesome to see you two battle one day, but I'll be rooting for you every time!"

"Wow...gee, thanks a lot, Shauna." We ended up smiling while Shauna just giggled.

"Hey...um...listen, Kat."

"Hm?"

Shauna started fiddling with the bow on her bracelet, looking bashful for the first time that I've met her. "I...um...I just wanted to tell you that...that I really, really, really want to be good friends with you. I mean, I've known the guys for years, but I never met anyone else outside of Vaniville Town. When I heard that there was a new girl moving in, I was, like, super excited, y'know? I really didn't care that you were Grace's kid, I just wanted to make a new friend that I could just be cool with, y'know? A-and when I heard the Professor say that he was gonna invite you to travel with us, I was SOOOO psyched, I could barely contain myself! I know I've told you that one of the reasons why I wanted to travel was the create memories, but I think the best memory I've made was meeting you yesterday. N-not, trying to sound like an idiot or anything but...it's just how I feel..."

I heard Chester making some worried noises while pulling at Shauna's shorts, seemingly to sense that there might be something wrong. I was left speechless - I only met Shauna yesterday, and she already feels this way about me? Perhaps she's been sheltered while living for Vaniville Town up until now? She seems to be very inexperienced about the outside world and the people outside of her hometown, so maybe she feels comforted around me because I have had my fair share of traveling, albeit just a little? What ever the reason was, I believe Shauna will have to learn to grow up and mature on her own, but I can understand why she would want to be around someone else. The outside world is a scary place, especially for someone who has never been past the home. If you don't have any good friends to look after you while you travel, you're pretty much on your own and have to look after yourself. But pressure like that can make someone like Shauna breakdown in just a matter of days. Perhaps that's the reason why she has to be around someone at all times.

"Hey, at least you were being honest," I said, finally finding my voice "Look, I never had any friends - and real friends up until now. Back in Johto, a lot of kids I went to school with only want to be my friend because my Mom was famous, and only cared about what they could get out of me. So I've been alone for most of my life, and I always believed that there weren't a lot of good people out there, so I stayed in the house most of the time and tried to avoid people in any way I could. But...now that I've met you guys, I'm starting to see that the world isn't just in black and white; it's much more colorful and bright once you're able to see past the bad parts, y'know?"

"Yeah! The world is just a big ol' rainbow!" Shauna exclaimed, regaining her energetic personality again, much to my relief. "Hey! Speaking of rainbows, there's a boutique just a few buildings down from the Pokémon Center. We should go there and get some new clothes!"

"I actually need some more clothes," I admitted, even though I was using it as an excuse to get rid of that stupid dress. We paid for the meal after we were done and went to the boutique after we left. They really didn't have anything in particular that I wanted, so I bought another cap and a pair of shorts. Shauna went nuts in there, grabbing and trying on every piece of clothing she could get her hands on. I had to remind her that she should try to save her money for supplies, so she settled on buying a shirt and a pair of leggings, much to her dismay. By the time we left the boutique, Calem had finished his match against the Gym Leader and unsurprisingly came out victorious with his new Badge. But it kinda came with a price.

"What the heck happened to you?"

Calem shot Shauna a sort of annoyed look. His clothes were soaked with a combination of water, sweat and dirt, with pieces of what looked like some sort of white silk in his hair and clothes. "If you're going to the Gym, you'll find out why."

"I'm challenging the Gym," I said "I gotta see when a match is available, though."

"A word of advice," Calem said "Viola, the Gym Leader, is prepared for Fire types. She starts out with a Surskit, so I recommend catching a Flying type to make it a little more easier. But Viola's no pushover - I had to work for this badge."

I nodded. "I'll keep that in mind."

Claem went back to the Pokémon Center to get himself cleaned up and change his clothes. We still didn't know where Tierno or Trevor were, so I offered to go look for them. Merida and I wandered around the city for a while, checking every café, the plaza, the other shops, the Pokémon Center, and everywhere else in the city. But they were no where to be found, so I had to assume that they were on one of the Routes doing whatever they it was they were doing. The gate leading to Route 4 was just towards the west, so I headed there to see if I could find them. There were two women talking to each other when I reached the gate - one of them was a fairly short woman with short blond hair, white tank top, green knee-knockers and boots and had a camera around her neck, while the other was light brown hair, a pink and black shirt, beige pants and a fanny-pack on her waist. I didn't pay them any attention, until one of them spoke to me.

"Hmm? Excuse me, miss?"

"Huh?"

The brown-haired woman was the first to approach me - the blonde haired one was right behind her. "Hi, sorry to stop you like this, but you look familiar...Your name wouldn't happen to be Kat, would it?"

I nodded. "Yes, it is."

"And your mom wouldn't happen to be the famous Rhyhorn Rider Grace Yvetta, would it?"

Oh, great. "Yeah, she is."

The woman smiled before she extended her hand towards me. "I figured. My name's Alexa - I'm a journalist. I was the one who interviewed Grace after she won the National Championship in Johto."

"Oh! I remember seeing you during the ceremony," I said as I shook her hand "I didn't know you lived in Kalos."

"Yup. Kalos is my base of operations, but I do travel to other regions to get the biggest scoops of the century. I even write articles for a Pokémon magazine that I published a little while back." She then motioned at blondie next to her. "This is my younger sister Viola. She's a photographer, and happens to be the Gym Leader here."

I shook Viola's hand as she said "It's a real pleasure to meet you. I would've been with Alexa during the Championship if my duties as a Gym Leader weren't so demanding. It was a real shame, but I'm going to get some a-MAZING shots once the International League begins next year! Oh, by the way...are you challenging the Gym? I just had a match with a boy around your age."

"That was Calem" I explained "We're traveling together for Professor Sycamore to complete the Pokédex."

"I heard about that," Viola nodded "Augustine - I mean the Professor - recently took in five kids as his students. I heard rumors that you were one of them, but I could barely believe it. you just moved here, after all."

I shrugged. "Hey, always expect the unexpected - that what my mom always says, anyway. But yeah, I wanted to challenge the Gym, so I'm glad I ran into you when I did. When are you accepting more challengers?"

Viola went silent for a minute as she rubbed her chin, before growing a broad grin. "Tell you what, I don't usually do this, but I'm willing to have an evening match with you. I've always been a fan of Grace, and I'm very curious about how you will do against me, even if you just started out as a Trainer. So, whaddya say? 4:30 sounds good to you?"

"4:30 sounds perfect," I grinned "Meet you then." Viola gave me directions to the Gym just in case I didn't know how to get there before I left. I met up with the gang at the plaza shortly afterwards - Tierno and Trevor were with Calem and Shauna when I arrived. I told them about my match with Viola this evening. Calem advised me to get some extra training in before going there. It was only a few minutes after 1:30, so I had to pass up our plans to hang out because I wanted to go ahead and train and not wait until the last minute. Trevor informed me that there were some Trainers and stronger wild Pokémon on Route 22 if I was interested. I decided to go ahead right then and there to practice. I bid my friends a quick goodbye before heading towards the east gate that led out to Route 22.

. . .

Route 22 wasn't very different from the earlier Routes, with the exception of the Pokémon League Gate at the end. I had no reason to go there, do I mostly focused on training. I battled against most of the Trainers that were loitering the place, and I came out victorious against everyone. Calem gave me a few pointers regarding Viola's Pokémon - she sends out her Surskit first to set up a Water Sport to weaken the power of fire based moves. Plus, it's pretty fast, and I doubt Merida could out-speed the thing right now. Then she sends out her Vivillon, which is a Flying and Bug type. I believe Merida wouldn't have too much of a problem with the Vivillon - it was the Surskit I was more worried about.

"Alright Merida," I said "I'm not sure what to expect when we go to the Gym, so we gotta cover everything we can while we're out here, 'kay?"

"Kiiiieen." I sat down on a fallen log and starting thinking about possible training methods. I remember reading about Surskit when I was still in school - it glides over the water's surface with grace and speed, so it must be pretty evasive if it was trained by a Gym Leader. Maybe I could try to recreate Surskit's movements somehow...

I saw some kids skating near the race track up ahead. They appeared to glide effortlessly as they raced each other down the road...Skate...glide...Wait a minute. I suddenly got up from the log and ran back towards Santalune, Merida at my heels even though she had no idea what I was doing. But the grin on my face indicated that I had an idea...

I ran back into the city, bought some roller skates some small beanbags and went back to the same area on the Route. I attached them to the bottom of my shoes and stood in front of Merida, who kept giving me some confused looks.

"Okay Merida," I said "we're going to work on your speed and evasion. Okay, now, I'm using the skates to try to mimic Surskit's movements, so pretend I'm Surskit and try to hit me with Scratch. The beanbags are going to be a make-believe Bubble, so try to avoid them as fast as you can. Your Fire type moves won't be really effective until we get rid of Surskit, so we're going to use this training exercise to work around that weakness of yours, okay?"

"Fwarff!"

I suddenly dashed to the left and threw one of the beanbags at her as hard as I could - I had a pretty good throwing arm after spending at least eleven years of my childhood playing T-ball and baseball in school and with Dad. Merida could barely avoid the first beanbag before I threw another one, and she had a lot of trouble trying to keep up with my speed.

"Never lose sight of your target!" I instructed "If you can't keep yourself focused, you'll leave yourself wide open for an attack! Try to keep your focus on my movements while trying to avoid the beanbags. Trust me, it'll help you in the long run!" Gritting her teeth, Merida did her best to follow my instructions. She got hit once or twice, but she didn't let that hinder her efforts. She soon learned how to use her large ears as an asset - if she wasn't able to face me in time, she would listen for the sound of my skates on the pavement and the rushing wind coming from the beanbags. Her speed improved considerably, so dodging the bags had almost became easier for her.

When I felt that she had improved to a satisfactory level, we worked on her attack methods. "I'm going to do the same thing as before, but this time, instead of avoiding, you'll have to try to hit me."

Merida frowned. "Rruuruu..."

"Don't worry about hurting me - a few scratches doesn't hurt anything. You retaliated pretty well after being hit with a beanbag, right? Besides, it's not like we're both intentionally trying to hurt each other. It's for training, remember?"

Merida made a gesture that looked like she was shrugging, but showed me she was willing to try it. We took our normal positions again, but now it was my turn to avoid Merida. I decided not to burn out Merida's fire supply and told her to just use Scratch. since her speed was improved from the beanbag sessions, it was my turn to have a hard time avoiding _her_ - I was really glad I bought the skates now.

"Thatta girl! Keep it up!" I could see Merida's confidence building by the second - she was focused, but it almost looked like she was having a lot of fun. She had bit at my leg a few times, but it was nothing severe, though she left some scratches afterwards. Some of the Trainers who were on the Route - including some I had already defeated - were watching us from the background, and making a few comments.

"Whoa, cool!"

"Isn't that Grace's kid?"

"That Fennekin's really fast! Look at it!"

"That's an odd way to train a Pokemon...I should give it a try."

"I wonder if she's strong..."

"She is. She beat me in a battle a little while ago."

I better not gain a fan club by the end of this. Anyway, Merida managed to hit me a few times with Scratch and even Ember, but I managed to avoid being burned. I noticed that it was getting a bit late, so I checked to see what time it was only to see that it was 3:49pm - I was going to have to wrap up the training if I wanted to be on time for my battle with Viola. However, the moment I looked over at Merida to tell her we were done, I saw that her entire body was surrounded in flames before she charged at a speed that almost matched a bullet. I screamed and dashed to the side quickly, only to lose my balance and fall. I hit the ground pretty hard, and I ended up tearing a hole in my jeans and scraped my elbow a little. Merida was making some frantic yipping noises as she scurried over to me, checking to see if I was hurt. My elbow stung, but that was about it - I didn't break a bone or anything major.

"Hey, it's alright, calm done. I'm fine, see?" I told her as I stood up on my feet. She calmed down once she saw I wasn't severely injured and barked at me again. "What was that back there? Did you learn a new move or something?" She nodded as I took out my Pokédex and did another quick scan. The move she had learned was called Flame Charge; it was like a Fire type Tackle, but it increased the user's speed each time it was used. I grinned - that was going to be VERY useful even after the Gym battle since there are other Pokemon out there that can easily out-speed Merida. I detached the roller skates from my shoes and told Merida that we were done for the day. Some of the Trainers who were watching me were giving me compliments as I walked past, and some of them even requested a battle or a rematch. I had to decline since I had a Gym match in less than an hour, and I had to get myself and my partner rested up before then.

"If I come out with a shiny new Badge on my belt, then we can battle," is what I told them before going back to Santalune. I went straight to the Pokemon Center to get Merida checked out to ensure that there wasn't anything wrong with her before I left. I checked the time again and saw that it was a 4:02pm, so I had almost a half an hour before I had to leave. I ran into Trevor in the Center as I waited for Merida - he was at the pharmacy in the back getting a refill on some disposable contacts.

"I didn't know you wore contacts," I told him. We were sitting at one of the tables in the lobby since I was still waiting for Merida.

"Yeah, I can't have glasses," he told me "I always ended up breaking or losing them. I find the contacts easier to handle because I can sleep in these, and throw them away when I don't need them anymore." He then looked at me before raising an eyebrow. "What happened to you? You're all banged up..."

"Training," I said with a shrug "Merida ended up learning a new move. I think we'll be set for our battle."

"Oh, speaking of, Calem, Shauna and Tierno wanted told me to tell you that they wish you good luck in your match. And I also hope you do well against the Gym Leader."

I smiled. "Tell 'em I'll give it my best shot! And thanks for the support, Trevs."

_Ding-dong! "Calling Kat Yvetta to the reception counter - your Fennekin is ready to be picked up."_

"That'd be me," I said as I stood up. I checked the time again and saw that it was pretty close to 4:30. "I better head to the Gym too. I'll meet up with you guys later, 'kay?"

"Okay. See you soon!" Trevor and I left the table at the same time, but he went back to our rooms while I went to go pick up Merida at the counter. We left the Center and went straight to the Gym - I had memorized where it was before I left out to Route 22 to train. I didn't need to though; turns out that it was near the eastern gate to that Route, so finding it was pretty easy. I heard Merida make a soft growl of anticipation and excitement as I stood before the Gym. I gave one more look at my partner, nodded at each other, and then entered.

. . .

I was starting to understand why Calem came out looking like a hot mess once I was inside of the Gym. It was pretty tame in the lobby; photographs of various Bug type Pokémon in various sizes were all over the walls. My guess was that Viola took those pictures, considering that she was both a photographer and loved Bug types. Merida and I took a minute to look at the various pictures before we went into the second part of the Gym, which was down below. To get there, you had to slide down this skinny white pole. But once you reach the end, you get thrown onto this giant web that was in the center of a recreated forest habitat around it. There were a lot of other Bug types on the giant leaves and branches, and to make matters worse, there was an Ariados eyeing me as I struggled to my feet on the web. I returned Merida to her Pokéball because she was putting extra weight on me, making it hard to keep my balance.

The web was sticky and appeared very thin and frail, but it held my weight pretty well to my surprise. Unfortunately, I couldn't stay on my feet, so I had to swallow my dignity and pride and crawled across the web until I reached Viola in the very back. Needless to say, I was pretty embarrassed when I got there, and I made no efforts to hide it. I was covered with bits and pieces of the web, and the giant dewdrops that were on said web and some of the leaves had managed to get on me, soaking my hair and clothes, but also washed some of the dirt off from the training. I was beginning to wonder if Calem had to go through the same thing, since he was in the same shape that I'm in now. He probably fell once or twice, since he was covered with dirt too.

Viola was waiting under a tent built up in one of the smaller trees. She was fumbling with her camera when I got there, and I was surprised to see Alexa sitting in a lawn chair near a desk littered with papers and camera equipment. She greeted me when I arrived, getting Viola's attention away from the camera. She saw the mess I was in and giggled, but I didn't find it very funny.

"Sorry about that," she said "The Spinarak and Ariados I raise here kept making webs down here, so I created a huge one made from their and Vivillon's silk combined with reinforced twine so it would be able to hold up the weight of a person or two. The boy who came in here earlier fell off, though...I hope he's okay."

"Nah, he's alright," I said "he was more annoyed if anything else."

"I hope you don't mind me spectating," I heard Alexa say "I want to write an article about this in my magazine - I think it would be great way to show the world that Grace's daughter is striving to be the next hotshot Trainer. If you win the match, that is."

"Oh, I'm going to win alright," I cracked my knuckles "I did some extra training with Merida before I came here. I may be a rookie, but I have confidence in my skill and Merida's prowess to earn us our first Badge, so there's no way I'm backing out now! We're gonna give it our all!"

I wide grin suddenly appeared on Viola's face, but I couldn't tell if she was amused by my energy or getting psyched up herself. "Fantastic! Just fantastic! I LOVE it when a Trainer is brimming with such feisty energy, it's almost contagious! I get challengers everyday, but you...you're different. I can see it. The intense fire burning in your eyes, that determined expression and confident demeanor...You're a fine specimen indeed!" She took a Pokéball from her belt and tossed it, releasing (surprise) Shurskit. It chittered anxiously while eyeing me, knowing that I was another challenger. "I can already tell that I won't regret having this match with you, even if you win or lose. I know that you will live up to my expectations, now come at me!"

I gripped Merida's Pokéball and tossed it with gusto as I sent her out into the battlefield. She turned to give me a quick look that said "let's do it" before turning towards Surskit and howling eagerly. Viola raised her eyebrow at the fact that I was using a Fire type, but said nothing about it. I expected her to nerf Merida by setting up a Water Sport, but she didn't instead she went straight to attacking. Surskit fired water-filled bubbles straight at Merida with great speed, but she reacted quickly and dodged to the left before charging at the blue bug and scratching it the same way she did in our training. Surskit took heavy damage, but was far from finished. It skittered across the field at amazing speed that made it look as if it were gliding, even if it wasn't on water. I was right when I figured Surskit had great speed, but it looked like it was faster than I originally thought it would be.

"Remember our training Merida - focus on your target. Don't give it an opening." Merida quickly nodded - she was too focused on Surskit. She used the same methods she learned earlier, using her acute sense of hearing to dodge any incoming attacks that were coming her way. She got hit with some of those bubbles and a Quick Attack, but Merida was persistent and was able to endure whatever Surskit threw at her. I couldn't say the same for the little blue bug though - it was covered with scratches and had a burn on its body, and it was limping whenever it moved. We both knew that one more hit would be enough to finish it, so I allowed Merida to use her new move to finish it off, increasing her speed in the process. Viola wasted no time and sent out her second and last Pokemon, a gray butterfly with pretty pink wings (Vivillon). It was only a Bug and Flying type, so I didn't hold back on the Fire based attacks. Vivillon was no push over though, and had an advantage over Merida since it could fly, making it considerably more agile than Surskit. I was thankful for Flame Charge and the training - because Merida's speed had improved, plus the extra boost with Flame Charge, both parties were having some difficulty avoiding or trying to attack the opponent. I had to stop using Flame charge since Vivillon could easily dodge by just flying higher or to the side and up its defense with Harden, so we had to stick with Ember and hope Merida could land a hit. This dragged on for a while - Viola and I giving out instructions to best the other, but we were evenly matched. Merida was growing tired, but Vivillon didn't look any better. It was having trouble keeping itself in the air, and it wasn't as fast as it was before. Merida was breathing hard, covered with bruises from Vivillon's Tackle, but the fur in her ears was glowing intensely with fire, as if it were giving her extra energy. It probably wasn't the wisest idea to come in with just Merida; I was putting more pressure on her than I had originally realized. I knot of guilt began to develop in my stomach, but I ignored it and focused; I would apologize to her after the match. I had to finish this, and if I was right, one more hit and Vivillon would be defeated. Not that landing that last hit would be easy; Vivillon had just as much energy to spare, but its weakest spot was where the chest and thorax connected...I wonder if...

"Merida, head straight towards it!" Merida charged at full speed, and Vivillon's initial instinct told it to fly higher. _Perfect._ "JUMP!" Merida was directly under Vivillon when she launched herself into the air. The butterfly nor its Trainer could comprehend what we were doing. Merida waited until she was close enough before she launched a fireball right at Vivillon. Due to the clase range, there was no where for it to escape to, and it let out a pained shriek before it fell to the ground, unconscious and defeated.

"YES! We did it!" I cheered as Merida landed on the ground again "Merida you were awe-sooome...?" I could barely finish my sentence when I managed to look at my partner again. The fiery glow that was emanating from the fur in her ears was a bright orange, until the fire coming from it suddenly engulfed my little fox in the flames. The light then morphed into a white light, and Merida's body began to change before our eyes. She suddenly stood upright, becoming a bipedal creature as her front paws transformed into arms, and her hind paws becoming more like feet. The light then faded, revealing a bipedal fox-like creature with black legs, a white furred collar and arms and more orange fur growing from her ears. A stick was sticking out of her tail, and the fur near her waist stuck out more, making it look a bit like a short dress. I used my Pokédex to scan this new creature, and soon learned that my cute little Fennekin had evolved into the cool Braixen. I had my arms around Merida before I even knew it; I was so happy that I could barely contain myself. Not only did I won my first Gym Badge, but Merida evolved in the process, showing me that I am a good Trainer if my partner could achieve this new form of strength. Our celebration had to wait however, when I noticed Viola standing in front of us, a broad smile on her face.

"Fantastic! Honestly, you two were simply amazing," she said before handing me a copper badge in the shape of a beetle with green gemstones in it. "Here's your Bug Badge, proof that you have defeated me in battle." I accepted the badge with humbleness and pinned it to my shirt. I would have to get a Badge Case at the PokéMart when I go back to the Center. "I shouldn't have expected anything less from Grace's daughter. Though, I'm curious about something..how come you only used Fennekin - I mean, Braixen? You have other Pokémon with you, yeah?"

I shook my head. "No. Merida's my first and only Pokémon. In fact, I just got her yesterday."

"You only came in here with a single Pokémon on your team that you've only had for more than a day?...Interesting, and different from the challengers I've faced in my time as a Gym Leader."

"Well, it obviously shows that she had more than enough faith in Fennekin - well Braixen, I should say - to pull off this victory," Alexa said as she stood next to her sister "After all, not many rookie Trainers are confident in their abilities to be able to pull of what Kat has today. And the fact that she just received her Pokémon makes this occasion even more remarkable. This will be one of my best articles yet, with some good shots to boot." She then looked at her watch and sighed. "I wish I could do an interview, but I'm afraid it will have to wait for another time. I'll have to leave for Lumiose City pretty soon if I want to get this article out by tomorrow. Sorry sis..."

"Hey, it's alright - don't worry about it," Viola insisted "Also, be careful when you get back there. I heard that half of the city is experiencing a blackout."

I tilted my head a bit. "A blackout?"

"Yes, about that," Alex explained "Last night, the power suddenly went out on the other half of Lumiose City - that's the next city over, by the way. No one knows what caused it, but there has been talk that there's something going on at the Power Plant on Route 13. We've tried contacting the Plant, but we never get an answer. We even sent some workers to check on it, but they have yet to return. Clemont - the Gym Leader of Lumiose - is doing his best to reduce the panic, but he can only do so much..." She sighed. "I really hate to put so much pressure on Phos and Lux, but I have work to do. The backup generator in my apartment is a piece of crap, but it's the only thing I have until the blackout is resolved..."

I was curious about the blackout, but I didn't ask anymore questions about it. If it's the next place after Santalune, then I would ask for the details when we get there. Viola gave me a Technical Machine - or TM for short - for the Bug type move called Infestation. She jokingly said if Merida wasn't so fast, she could have shown the move off, but she enjoyed herself regardless. Speaking of, I returned Merida to her Pokéball to let her rest; as much as I wanted to show off my newly evolved Pokémon, her health was more important. I'll show the gang after she's healed up when I get back to the Pokémon Center. Viola told me that there was a stairwell leading back up to the lobby behind the curtain in the back to her tent, so I didn't have to climb over the web to get out. Alexa led me out since she had to leave anyway, and she showed me where the stairs were before going back to the lobby. It was dark out when we left the Gym - I had to guess that it was 8 or close to 9 by now. Alexa and I parted ways after a quick goodbye was exchanged (she gave me an Experience Share - Exp. Share for short - too); she headed towards the western gate that supposedly went to Lumiose City while I went back to the Center. I felt my new Badge pinned to my shirt, feeling very proud of Merida and myself for bringing us both this far. But this was just the first trial - the road after this is going to be long, tedious and filled with many more challenges ahead, but I had faith that Merida and I would be able to overcome what ever comes down the road. Besides, I've already come this far - no sense in turning back now.

* * *

**E/N:** I have to put "pm" or "am" after writing the time. It just...it feels like it makes it easier to determine the time, you know? I should've probably capitalized it but eh...too late to fix it now. Sorry if it bothers anyone.

Ihad a bit of trouble writing this one, but I think it came out pretty well. I'm looking forward to writing the chapters for Camphrier Town and Route 7, Ambrette Town and the Glittering Cave, Route 13 and the Power Plant, and Lumiose City after the blackout. Those are going to be fun to write.

I would have had this up sooner, but I've had several things come up - mostly work - so I had to wait to finish/post the chapter. I'm glad I got it done though. Even more glad that people are liking this story.

So...regarding Merida (the name of my actual Fennekin/Braixen), I told you all earlier that I tend to over-train my Pokémon, so I really did have a Braixen by the time I left the first Gym. And this doesn't help once you get the Exp. Share after you beat the Gym Leader. I swear, my team was overpowered as hell, but it made training your weaker Pokémon SO much more easier, so I rarely turned mine off.

So, what do you guys think? Is it still good? Is it getting boring? Is the story getting interesting or not? I do have an idea for what happens later on that will explain everything, I promise.

_Psst! Whoever can guess the reference Phos and Lux comes from get a free internet cookie._


	4. Fairies

**A/N:** Shorter chapter today. There was really nothing interesting I could write until the next one, so I apologize if this one seems a little bland.

* * *

Sleep was evasive for me when I returned back to our room later that night. After Merida was restored back to full health, I returned to the room to see that everyone was there resting as well. I showed the gang my shiny new Gym Badge, and my newly evolved Pokémon when I came back. Shauna was ecstatic, and insisted that we should have a celebratory breakfast or lunch tomorrow to congratulate Calem and I on getting our first Gym Badges. I wanted to refuse, but it would be rude and I would feel bad afterwards because Shauna had already begun to make plans before anyone could stop her. So we let her have our fun - we didn't want to spoil her happiness in any way.

Speaking of Calem, turns out that Genji had evolved into a Frogadier after their match - we spent an hour or two helping our Pokémon get adjusted to their new bodies. Genji didn't seem to have much of a problem since he had evolved during the battle (from what Calem told me), so he had some early practice. We weren't that fortunate since Merida evolved after, so I had to spend more time with her than Calem did with Genji. I think the sudden transition from four legs to bipedal threw her off. I mostly helped her to walk and grip things with her now hand-paw, and she got the hang of it before too long. Once I felt she didn't need my support, I left her to herself while I took a quick shower to wash off the sweat and bug thread. when I came out, Chester and Electra were practically fawning over Merida in her new form, mostly Chester though. I took the time out to call Mom and tell her about my recent victory. I even introduced her to the gang since everyone was in our room. After that, we stayed up past midnight with Calem and I sharing our stories of our battles against Viola. We mostly stayed humble about it, but we exaggerated a few parts just for fun. We finally went to bed later that night, and I was knocked out the moment my head hit the pillow. Today was **exhausting...**

I slept until it was almost eleven in the morning the next day - I honestly didn't care about sleeping in, I was super tired. I did manage to get up before it got too late, so I took a quick shower and left the Center. I had missed breakfast, so I had to settle for lunch; Turns out everyone was waiting for me so we could have that celebratory meal that Shauna was so intent on having. We ate at one of the nicer restaurants near the plaza that afternoon and spent the rest of the day exploring the rest of Santalune. Shauna took me shopping at the Boutique again (turns out they change their stock everyday), and I bought another shirt, some socks and another hat. I wanted to buy Merida an accessory or a gift to thank her for earning us our first Gym Badge and to congratulate her recent evolution. Unfortunately, the boutique in Santalune didn't have anything worth giving my beloved partner, so I had to hold off on the gift, much to my dismay. I should also mention that I got to learn more about the gang as we spent the day together. As you know, Trevor's only traveling to complete his Pokédex and extend his knowledge about Pokémon. He isn't entirely sure on what he wants to do; he has a lot of knowledge about Pokémon as it is, but he doesn't think he has what it takes to be the next Pokémon Professor. He's just extending his knowledge as early as he can apply it later in life when he can. Tierno wants to create a Pokémon dance team. He only has Rodney right now, and has made no real effort to catch any more. He gets so distracted when a Pokémon uses its moves that he can't help but to stand there and watch, reason why he loses a lot of battles, and why a lot of Pokémon flee before he can throw a Pokéball at them. He wants to travel the world and perform on stage in towns and cities with his dance team - he believes that dancing can make everyone happy, and seeing Pokémon dancing will bring more and more people together. He's been into dancing ever since he was a small boy - he saw a Pokémon Contest where a contestant made her Pokémon dance on the stage. The audience went wild and the Trainer ended up winning, but that was Tierno's inspiration for his journey. Shauna isn't exactly sure why's she's travelling, besides the "making memories" bit. But then she elaborated on it saying that she wants to explore the world and be one of those people who can say "yeah, I've been here and there. I even have pictures!" She knows that the world is much more vast beyond her home in Vaniville and Kalos, and wants to be able to travel the world and preserve the sights she's seen and the people she meets in her memories. She also wants to see what other kinds of Pokémon that are out in the world besides the ones here in Kalos. Calem's pursuing his own strength - he's entering the Pokémon League to prove to his family that he can surpass his parents' expectations. He refused t elaborate more on that, but - once again - we didn't pry. And me? Well...I honestly didn't know why I was travelling exactly. I wanted to extend my knowledge on the Pokémon in this region, but I also wanted to test my skill as a Trainer and take any challenges if I can...but I also want to make memories with my friends and get to see what Kalos had to offer. Who knows? Whatever my path leads to, I don't regret starting my journey. As long as Merida's by my side, I didn't care where we would end up.

That following evening, Calem and I had a race to see who was the fastest on roller skates. We used the Rhyhorn Race Track on Route 22 for the race since it wasn't being used (and there wasn't anyone around to tell us that we couldn't enter it, either). The first to two laps around the entire course was the winner, and since the race track itself was pretty big - almost as big as a baseball field - we thought two laps was good enough. We had to leave tomorrow for Lumiose City, so we couldn't tire ourselves out too much. Trevor was going to time us while Shauna, Tierno and our Pokémon sat on the sidelines to cheer us on. When Trevor shouted "go," Calem and I took off like bullets down the track, each not wanting to be outdone by the other. We were neck-and-neck for both laps; we had got ahead of each more than once, but we would always catch up a few seconds later. There was no real winner in the end, since the race ended in a tie. Having good sportsmanship, we declared each other the winner and called it a day and went back to the Pokémon Center to get rested up for the next leg of our adventure.

The next morning proceeded as normal - I showered, got dressed and had Merida checked on in the Center before leaving. As much as I enjoy spending time with the gang, we decided to split meet up Lumiose City - the hear of Kalos - at our own time, so I was on my own for the next Route. I decided to let Merida out of her Ball so she could walk with me so I wouldn't feel too lonely. Besides, I wanted to bond with her one-on-one - we really haven't had time to do that ever since we left Aquacorde. Mom and Dad taught me that the best way to bond with your Pokémon was to talk with it at all times; expressing your feelings and thoughts is a good way for Pokémon and Trainer to get to know each other more. Trying to understand what Merida will say was going to be considerably difficult - I can't speak their language, so I'm just going to have to go by her body language. It was kinda weird, though. As much as I loved Merida, I still felt a bit awkward when it came to conversation. I guess it didn't matter if it's a Pokémon or human, I was just bad with communication.

Route 4, also known as Parterre Way, was a scenic upgrade from Route 3. Brightly colored flower beds and perfectly trimmed hedgerow gardens decorated the grassy area of the Route. A light breeze carried stray flower petals and leaves to unknown destinations, accompanied with a pleasant scent of a peaceful meadow. I could see a fountain further down, but I couldn't see much of it since I was so far away. I disregarded it for the time being and took more interests in the flower beds. I could see the silouettes of various Pokémon scurrying around in them, so I took the opportunity to fill up my Pokédex pages. Merida also took this time to train against any wild Pokémon that were foolish enough to attack while I went through the flowers. I managed to find some Budew, two Skitty, a lot of Combee (both male and female), some Ledyba and the rest were Pokémon I had already seen on previously. It turned out that those hedges I mentioned earlier was a sort of maze, so I played tag with Merida as we ran through them. An old man yelled at us for playing in them after a while, saying we were making a lot of noise and were ruining his freshly trimmed garden. I apologized and left quickly, since the guy had an electric hedge trimmer - the LAST thing I wanted to do was piss him off.

"Good thing we got away in time, huh Merida?" I asked, going through some of the yellow flowers. "He'd probably cut us up and throw our bodies parts in a river somewhere like in those cheap, cable horror movies."

Merida made a noise that sounded like a small laugh. "Braaiiiah."

I suddenly paused, feeling a slight...pressure in the back of my head - my brain, to be more accurate. It was weird...it almost felt like something was trying to get out...or in. It only lasted for a few seconds before it faded, so I shook it off and kept walking. "Ah well. Look, the fountain's up ahead. We must be getting close."

I was almost out of the flowers when I heard a noise, and seeing something move from the corner of my eye. I looked down and scanned the flowers closely, looking to see if I could find anything out of the ordinary. I finally found it, after seeing something white duck its head behind one of the flowers. Curious, but also cautious, I knelt down and carefully parted the flowers without trying to agitate to startle what ever it is that was there. I managed to find the thing I was looking for - it was this, tiny white Pokémon with a yellow crown, long ears and a green tail. It was gripping the stem of the flower for dear life, trembling and looking up at me with fearful eyes before ducking back behind the flower. It was so tiny and pitiful, I felt so sorry for it...

"Beeehheeaah..." she murmured.

"Ohh, you poor thing," I spoke softly, making sure not to scare it anymore than I already did. "I scared you by walking through here, didn't I? I'm so, so sorry..."

It peeked up from behind one of the petals, then looked at Merida, then back at me. "Laaehhiee...?"

That pressure came back the moment the Pokémon spoke, but it was weak. But it got stronger when Merida suddenly spoke. "Brraaiiyah, roaa niiex."

_"...She...on't...Trai...nic..."_

That voice...was that...no - couldn't be. That almost sounded like Merida, but she was actively talking - well, she was, just using her native tongue. It was more like I could _hear_ what she was saying in my head. I could only hear bits and pieces of what she said though; It was like my brain was a radio and was only receiving a low signal. This didn't start until today, so where did this come from? I couldn't be able to speak to Pokémon, could I? But if that were true, I would've been able to ever since I was a little girl. I've been around Ryder all my life, so why would this weird thing happen now all of a sudden? It didn't make sense, and I debunked the phenomena as a mind trick. I refocused on the small Pokémon before me, who seemed to be less fearful of me now and was almost resting on top of the flower, but it still looked troubled.

"Hey, what's wrong?" I asked, and it only murmured. "Something bothering you?" It went quiet for a moment, before a loud noise that sounded like a lawnmower emanated through the area. The tiny Pokémon let out a shriek before hiding behind its flower again and whimpering. I frowned, looking up to see that same old man who yelled at us in the hedge-maze trimming the hedgehogs with his electric trimmer. I felt something brush against my hand and looked down, only to see the small creature inching close to me for comfort. It when then when I noticed that a piece of its right ear was missing, and then I was able to put two-and-two together. This Pokémon was probably wandering around in the maze or in the hedges themselves one day, and while it was in them, the old man started trimming them and probably cut off part of its ear. I know it was unintentional, and with that trimmer being so loud, he probably couldn't hear the poor creature scream in pain. But it had probably fled into the safety of the flowers by then, so he had no way of knowing. I know it was an accident, but it still made me mad. No wonder it was so fearful of humans and the sound of the damned trimmer - it probably believes we're gonna cut the poor thing in half!

I heard it whimper again, and I used my fingers to nudge it a little. "Hey, it's okay...nothing's gonna hurt you." I lowered both of my hands and cupped them in front of it, letting it know that I wasn't going to hurt it, as well as offer a ride. It looked at my hands with uncertainty before looking over at Merida. She nodded at it, and the little Pokémon hopped into my palms. The flower was probably a part of it, since the flower was floating off the ground with the Pokémon attached to it. I took out my Pokédex and did a quick scan of it. "What the heck are you, anyway...?" Turns out that it was a Flabébé, a Fairy type. As cute as it was, I decided not to catch it. The poor thing has already been through enough - I didn't want to put anymore stress on it since it was already scared half to death. "Hey, why don't you come with me? I'm sure we will be able to find a more peaceful place to live without having to worry about the constant threat of getting cut open. Whaddya say? I won't capture you or anything..." Flabébé looked up at me in a similar way a lost child would look up at any adult that was willing to help him find his mom. A look of hope in its eyes that said that it would do anything to get away from this place, even if it meant putting its life in the hands of some random girl. It stared at me for a moment, studying me before it nodded. I smiled at the little creature before standing up, letting it float in my palms for a bit before continuing down the road.

I talked to Flabébé as we walked, telling it about my Mom and Dad and how I came form a completely different region than the one it lived in. I told it about how my Mom was a renowned Rhyhorn Rider, my Dad working as a Pokémon Ranger, and that I had moved here a while ago. I also told it about how I became a Trainer and how I met the gang and Merida, and that I started my journey a few days. Then I showed it my Gym Badge stilled clipped to my shirt, and it looked at it with great interest.

"I won this yesterday," I explained "Can ya believe it? A rookie Trainer getting her first Gym Badge the day after she became a Trainer. What are the odds?" Flabébé stayed quiet, but I could tell that I had its attention. "Thing is...even though I've beaten a Gym Leader and been on the road with my friends for a few days, I'm nervous." Flabébé's eyes widened in disbelief, but I continued. "I've never been away from home for a long time, nor have I traveled this far. In a way, I'm excited because I get to explore this world and get to see so many Pokémon and meet new people. But at the same time, I'm worried that I won't be a good Trainer, y'know? What if I can't properly raise my Pokémon? What if I run into some bad people and get myself into a situation where I can't get out of? And...in the world we live in...what will happen if I...die? I try so hard to be positive, but those negatives always creep back into my mind, making me wish I would have stayed home and never come out here because I'll be safe and sound there, not having to worry about the many dangers on the outside. But you know what? Whenever I look at Merida and see my friends, all of that worry vanishes, because I know that they will always have my back whenever I'm down. And I'll always have my Mom and Dad's support too, even when they're not around. It's better to be surrounded by those who love and care about you to help you move forward, because if you don't have them, you won't have anyone else."

I looked over at Merida for agreement, and she smiled and nodded. "Brah-yooo!"

"I bet it's so scary," I murmured, looking back at the tiny Flabébé "to be all alone out here. With you being so small, the world is even scarier, isn't it? And it didn't help when you were almost...y'know...You have to live in fear everyday..."

Flabébé gripped its flower tighter and shuddered, as if it were remembering that day it got a piece of its ear cut off. "Aaaeeeiii..."

My sympathy grew for the tiny creature as I approached the fountain in the middle of the Route. It was beautiful - emerald colored metal with gold trimming, with this huge gold Clampearl sitting on top while gold statues of Horsea sprayed water in front of it, while another sport of water cascaded down into the pool. Flabébé, Merida and I were captivated by the fountain's beauty, but Flabébé was so enamored in it that it actually floated out of my palm and went closer to it. I noticed a plaque on the very front of the fountain and decided to read it.

_"Perle Fountain._

_Acceptance creates harmony._

_Harmony creates unity._

_Unity creates peace._

_Peace creates prosperity and growth._

_These are the main virtues to create the ideal and perfect world, where beauty is everlasting._

_We of Kalos - and everyone around the world - hope that people and Pokémon alike can come together and work in both harmony and unity to make this dream world a reality."_

I furrowed my brow at the plaque, reading the passage a few more times before standing back up. "Huh...I think I read that passage somewhere before."

"Hey. You."

I turned around to see a girl that was possibly the same age as me. She had long curly ginger hair with a bright green bow on the back of her head. She was wearing a green top with a baby blue scarf covered with glitter around her neck, short shorts and blue platform sandals. Her face was covered with makeup - mostly pink lipstick and blue eye shadow. She was eyeing me and my party with an unimpressed, but seemed more interested in Flabébé.

"That yours?" she asked, though she had a demanding tone in her voice as she pointed at Flabébé. I didn't like the tone of this girl's voice, and I was tempted to lie to her for Flabébé's sake, but I've been taught to always tell the truth, no matter what it is. If you continue to lie, then the truth becomes clouded, making it near impossible to distinguish a lie from the truth - that's what my Dad always told me, anyway.

"No," I said "technically it's still a wild Pokémon, but it's travelling with me for the time being."

"So you don't own it, right?" I shook my head. "Good. Move."

I furrowed my brow at her as Flabébé hid behind me and Merida growled softly. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me," she said "I said move. I want that Pokémon and since you don't own it, it's fair game. What ever isn't claimed can be taken - that's how the world works."

"Just because something doesn't have your name on it doesn't mean it belongs to you," I said huffily "Everything in this world is meant to be shared equally, whether it's resources or Pokémon. Just because you want something doesn't mean that the world has to bow down to you and hand it to you on a silver platter. You have to work for and EARN the things you want."

The girl scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Don't act like a hotshot just because you won that stupid Badge. You may be Grace's kid, but I honestly don't care. Only people with power survive in this world - the weak is just thrown aside like trash."

I smirked. "You shouldn't talk about yourself like that, y'know."

"Are you calling me trash?"

"I'm calling you a spoiled, fake brat to be more precise." I retorted. She was really getting under my skin, but I made sure to keep my composure. "There are more Flabébé in the wild if you would actually get off your ass and look. Besides, you can't force a Pokémon to go with you if it doesn't want to." I looked back at Flabébé saw it gripping to my shirt while staring at the other girl with fearful eyes. "Besides, this little one doesn't want any part of you. Go find another one." I suddenly grinned. "Then again, I'm surprised that you even made it this far. Someone who gets catered to with no skills of survival is considered weak, because they have to rely on someone else to give them their strength. I earned my Badge because I proved that I am both skilled and has what it takes to survive on my own. The only reason why I have Merida by my side is because we're friends, and we share our strength with one another to overcome the trials that we will face down the road! So why don't you do us all a favor and get lost? I'm not going to waste my time or my breath on the likes of you."

That did it. The girl suddenly grabbed a Pokéball from her belt and threw it, releasing a Sneasel with a blue collar covered with gemstones. It looked at Merida and I as if we were the lowest dirt on the planet. Well, it looks like her attitude was contagious. There was fire burning in her eyes, and all it said was hate. I must have hit a nerve, and it felt really good.

"I refuse to be spoken to that way by some twerp!" she screeched. "Take care of them Priscilla!"

I sighed before looking over at Merida. "Sorry girl. I didn't mean for it to get this bad."

Merida just waved her paw before casually walking to her place on the "battlefield." Merida suddenly said something to Priscilla in Poké-speak, causing the Sneasel to suddenly shriek at her angrily before drawing her claws and charge at Merida. Said fox only yawned before pulling out her stick-wand from her tail and twirled it, creating a fiery vortex of doom to hurl itself at Priscilla. The Sneasel cried out in pain before turning on its heel and ran off towards Santalune, bawling it's eyes out. Her Trainer started to go after it, but not before turning back at us with anger and humiliation in her eyes as she scowled deeply.

"This isn't over!" she vowed "Next time I see you, I'm going to make you pay for this severely!"

"I'll believe it when I see it, sweetheart!" I shouted. Flabébé let out a squeal of happiness as it floated over to Merida and started dancing around her and singing. I smiled at the scene before looking back at the fountain. That passage I read was going to bug me until I figured out where I had read that before now. It was then when I noticed a city skyline behind the fountain; I took a guess that it was Lumiose City, and by the looks of it, we were really close. I called for Merida and Flabébé to come along, so they put their party on hold and followed me up the stairs to the next part of the Route.

More flowers and hedgerow-mazes decorated the Route still, but now there were two roads instead of just one, with another hedge looking like a natural fence around some more tall grass. There were other more Trainers on the road, so I battled most of them before continuing. During most of those battles, Merida kept using that new Fire type move that was completely alien to me. I used my Pokédex to find out what that move was, and found out that it was Merida's signature attack Mystical Fire. After battling and exploring through the hedgerow mazes for Pokémon, I finally made it to the gate leading to Lumiose City, and in good time, too. It was about 4 o' clock when I got there, so I wasn't dawdling out here for too long. Unfortunately, I couldn't go in just yet; there were two people - a young man and a woman - standing in front of the entrance talking to each other. The guy wasn't anything special - blue eyes and short blonde hair. The girl had a darker skin tone, with gray eyes and purple hair. Both of them wore white uniforms with ascots. The guy wore a blue ascot while the girl wore a red one. They must have noticed me, since they immediately looked in my direction and started to make small talk.

"Oh, hello there," the guy said politely "You must be Kat. Everyone's waiting for you at the Professor's lab."

I must be late. "I hope I keep them waiting for too long..."

"Not at all," the man said, then noticed Flabébé floating close to my side. "Ah! I see you caught a Flabébé!"

"It's not mine," I said quickly "It...got into some trouble in the hedgerow mazes, so I'm trying to relocate it somewhere safer."

The woman studied me for a moment before smiling and nodding with approval. "You have a kind heart, I like that in Trainers. Then again, I expect nothing less of Sycamore's handpicked students. My name is Sina, by the way. A beautiful name to suit a beautiful lady, wouldn't you say?"

Mom looks better, but that's just my personal opinion. The guy extended his hand towards me, and we shook hands. "And I'm Dexio. I too was given a Pokédex and traveled around Kalos upon the Professor's request. But that was two years ago, I'm afraid. I'm usually referred to as a 'Pokemon-voyage veteran,' but I'm far from being an expert." He cleared his throat. "So! About Flabébé, you know that it's a Fairy type, yes? It's-"

"The Fairy type a recently discovered type, turning the type match-ups upside down!" Sina interjected "We have been researching the Fairy type, putting them against different types to see what's effective and what's not. So far, we know that Poison and Steel types are very effective against Fairy types, while Dark, Fighting and Dragon types are weak against it. Still, there are a lot of things we don't know about this new type, and the fact that it had eluded us up until two years ago is astonishing. There are even Pokémon that we already know about whom we had already classified, but they were in fact Fairy types this whole time. Take the Azurill and Ralts family for example - Azurill was supposedly a Normal type, and after it evolved into Marill and then Azumarill, they become dual types, Water and Fairy. Same with Ralts, Kirlia and Gardevoir. Their Psychic and Fairy types, all of them."

"There's still a lot that we don't know about the Fairy type," Dexio continued, once Sina had stopped her rant "so there is still a lot of research we must conduct in order to get a full understanding. But we won't bore you with the details - you're here to see Professor Sycamore, not recite our study reports to you."

"No, it's fine. I found it really interesting," I insisted. I followed Dexio and Sina through the gate "So that means that there are 18 types instead of 17 now, right?"

Dexio nodded. "That's right. Though, there have been heavy debates on what's actually a Fairy type now, especially regarding the Legendaries. We discovered a Pixie Plate on the shores near Azure Bay, so Arceus can in fact be a Fairy type too, but there's no way to prove it." We came up to the entrance to Lumiose City when Dexio turned towards me. "I see you and Braixen are getting along well. Didn't you just receive it as a Fennekin 3 days ago?" I nodded. "Hmm...you're raising it well, especially since it has evolved fairly quickly. It shows that you are a good Trainer." He then pulled out another disc from his coat, which was another TM. This one contained the move Return, where its power increases the more your Pokémon likes you. I put it into my bag before Sina offered to lead me to the lab. If Lumiose was as big as people say (Shauna told me about it before we left Santalune), I didn't want to get lost while trying to find my way to the lab, so I said yes. We then entered Lumiose City, the next destination to my journey.

* * *

**E/N:** Flabébé is so cute, but it's so tiny. It makes me feel bad whenever I had to knock it out in battle...

I made some decisions regarding my - or Kat's - team. I'm still on the fence about who to put on it, but I have a fairly good idea. Kat'll get her second team member in the next chapter. But it won't be any the Kanto starters - you'll see why soon enough.

I made some decisions about my - or Kat's - team. I'm still on the fence about who to put on it, but I have a fairly good idea. Kat'll get her second team member in the next chapter. But it won't be any the Kanto starters - you'll see why soon enough.

This chapter is mostly revolving around Fairy types, isn't it? That was unintentional.


	5. A More Beautiful World

**A/N:** I have no idea what Professor Sycamore sounds like. I have not seen the X and Y adaption of the anime yet, since I haven't finished the last episodes of the Best Wishes series yet. I know he speaks some French in the game, but I don't know if he actually has an accent or not. So, I would rather not make a fool of myself, trying to write accents since I am horrible at writing them, and will just write plain English with some French thrown in there from the game and from what I already know (I took a French class when I was a freshman in high school, so I'm only using what I remember learning back then. If the translation is broken, I apologize in advance).

Sooo...I'm not the only one who thinks Professor Sycamore is hot right?...Right?...Just me?...'Kay then...*sits in shame corner*

* * *

Shauna wasn't kidding when she said that Lumiose City was the largest in Kalos, and it holds its title as being the heart of Kalos for a good reason. Buildings of all shapes, sizes and colors were everywhere, but the main attraction was the tall, ivory tower in the very middle of the city. Unfortunately, even though Lumiose City looked beautiful, more than half of it was shrouded in darkness. Alexa wasn't kidding when she said that the blackout was pretty bad here - you couldn't see what was down the street from the side I was on. We were on South Boulevard, which was the only place in the city that had power, from the looks of it. An odd thing I noticed about this place was that there were no cars present in the streets, but there were people and Pokémon walking in them freely. As a matter of fact, there were no motor vehicles of any kind present in the city, unless you count the ones that were parked near the sidewalk.

"Everyone's afraid of driving since there's little power now," Sina explained after I had asked about it "so there's a strict 'no driving' policy going on until power is restored back into the rest of the city. Only South Boulevard is accessible right now - everything else is blocked off for the time being." We came up to a cream-colored building with green borders along the windows that was three stories high a little further down the street. "Well, here we are!" Sina guided me into the building; The lab looked more like an office building, having colbalt blue walls, white tile floors and various pictures of Pokémon on the walls. There was even a front desk with a receptionist, to the right, and couches with tables to the left. In the back of the room was this "car" attached to thick cables. My guess was that it was the elevator. "The Professor is waiting for you on the third floor. I suggest you hurry along now - he's eager to meet you, after all."

"I will, thanks," I said, before looking at Merida and Flabébé "Alright you two, let's go."

"Rraaiiy."

"Lalabee!" My party of three entered the oddly designed and went straight up to the third floor. But once we stepped out, I was a bit surprised to see the gang were already here. I was immediately greeted by Shauna, who enthusiastically rushed over and got too close to my face again.

"Oh my gosh, you finally made it!" she squealed.

"At least give the girl some breathing room, Shauna!" a foreign voice chuckled. I managed to look past Shauna to see a man with slick dark hair and cloudy gray eyes in a blue collared shirt, black pants, brown shoes and a white lab coat. I could only guess that he was Professor Sycamore that I've heard so much about. I found myself staring at the man with a sudden warmness filling my face. I couldn't deny it - he was_ hot. _I also noticed that this floor was different from the previous one, with red carpeting, books littering the floor and tables, and soft accordion music playing in the background.

Shauna stepped aside as Sycamore walked over and extended his hand, which I shook with more enthusiasm than usual. "You must be Kat! I've heard a lot about you from Calem and Shauna - they believe you have a lot of potential. How is your mom, by the way?"

I raised my eyebrow at the random question, but replied anyway. "She's fine."

"Good! Now..." he looked at Braixen, who seemed happy to see the Professor and walked up to him instantly. Sycamore knelt down and rubbed her head before saying "Ahhh, so you've evolved into Braixen, and so soon might I add!" He looked back up at me again. "You obviously raise your Pokémon with love and care - it shows with how well you've been raising your Braixen so far. I said the same thing about Calem after seeing his Frogadier - I guess I made the right decision when I chose you all to be my pupils!" I felt honored to hear those words, more so because I was told that I was raising my Pokémon well, indicating that I can be a good Trainer as long as I kept trying. After some more chitchat, Sycamore compared all of our Pokédexes to evaluate our progress. Trevor came out victorious, having 40 Pokémon registered in his Pokédex so far. Calem was next, having 39 pages filled. I was right behind him with 38, and Shauna and Tierno tied for last, only having 23 pages filled in theirs. Regardless of who had how many, the Professor was still thrilled at our progress. Then he noticed Flabébé hiding behind me - it wasn't noticed until it peeked at everyone from behind my leg.

"Ah! So you caught a Flabébé Kat?" Sycamore asked.

I shook my head. "No...it's actually accompanying me for right now." I then explained how I found Flabébé near the hedgerow mazes scared out of its wits, its ear being cut off, and that I offered it a safer place to live if it came with me, but I said nothing about encountering that bratty Trainer at the fountain - I felt that was a story I could save for another time. Sycamore seemed very interested in my story, since he was studying me intently while rubbing his chin.

"Wow Kat, you really are nice to Pokémon, huh?" Calem observed "Where are you planning on taking it?"

"I honestly don't know yet," I replied, watching Flabébé float aimlessly around the group "I was gonna release it somewhere in the wild that suited its liking. It looks like it's a reserved type, so somewhere where there's not a lot of noise and commotion would suit it fine."

"I still feel sorry for it," Shauna said softly "after having to go through something like that! And to think that no one didn't bother to see if it was okay! People like that really make me mad!"

"The old man had no way of knowing," I said "Besides, even if someone did see what happened and wanted to check on it, it would've hid itself. It became afraid of humans, so until I came along, no one else would have known what had happened to it. Plus its so small...it wasn't easy finding it in the grass because it blended in so well." I noticed that Flabébé was taking an interest in Trevor. Said boy was watching Flabébé curiously before he held out his palm in a similar way I did before it came along with me. The tiny Pokémon looked at Trevor, then his hand, then back at the boy before she floated into his palm, and suddenly made a series of happy-sounding noises.

"Looks like it likes you, Trevs," Tierno noted, leaning over the two.

"Y-you think so?" Trevor asked, before looking over at me. "Is...is it okay, Kat? I mean, I just don't want to take it..."

"It wasn't mine to begin with," I said "but if Flabébé wants to go with you, then I have no right to try to stop it."

"Is it true, Flabébé?" Trevor asked, looking at the tiny Pokémon "Do you want to come with me? I-I'm not a strong Trainer like Calem or Kat, but I want to learn as much about Pokémon as I can! I just want us to be friends...I don't care about battling or competing with anyone..."

Flabébé only smiled and bounced around on its flower happily. "Flaalala-beeiii!"

Trevor smiled broadly before pulling out a Pokéball from his bag and holding it out towards Flabébé. Said Pokémon tapped the button and was turned into energy and sucked into the Ball. It showed no resistance, since the loud click was heard throughout the room almost immediately, indicating that Flabébé was caught. There was a small celebration for Trevor to congratulate his newest catch, mostly consisted of Shauna and Tierno gushing over the boy, but it was interrupted when we heard Sycamore giving us a one-man applause as he walked over.

"Amazing! Fantastic! Une telle pureté et la bonté!" he exclaimed, then turned towards me again, but with a more satisfied look to him. "I am glad that I was able to give you this opportunity, but after seeing what you are really capable of, I can safely say that you have surpassed my expectations! You see, I was originally going to give one child from a town a Pokémon and a Pokédex to go on a journey. The child is the offspring of a pair of Veteran Trainers, you see, so I thought he would be more than able. That child turned out to be Calem. Then I thought that Trevor and Tierno could go along as well. they were already students of mine, you see, and I thought they would learn more if they actually went out into the world to, not only fill in the Pokédex, but to mature and pursue their dreams. Then I learned about Shauna, who was tired of being sheltered by a protective parent and wanted to see the world through her own eyes. So you see, I was going to allow these four to complete this task for me...then I heard about you." I went over to his desk and pulled out a newspaper and a magazine. The newspaper had a picture of Mom, Dad, Ryder and I standing on a stage in Johto with Mom holding a large gold trophy in her arms while confetti and streamers were raining down on us. It was showing the day Mom had won the National Championship a year ago, months before had had to move. The magazine was opened to a page where pictures of Merida and I were facing off against Viola, and one where I was given the Bug Badge. It looked like Alexa had no problems with publishing that article. "When I heard that your family was moving here, I couldn't help but to considering adding one last child. I had heard how you had to move here from Johto, just after you had been approved to become a Trainer. I couldn't help but to sympathize with you - here, you're far away from the only home you've known, with only your family to be with you in this, strange, new region. That hit me hard, and that was when I decided that you - more than anyone - deserved a Pokémon and an opportunity to travel along with new friends. THAT is why I summoned you for this task. But after seeing what you've done in the short amount of time that you've traveled, it's obvious that you have a certain, shall we say, je ne sais quoi~ Now, originally I was going to challenge you to a battle and give you another Pokémon as a reward if you defeated me. But to be honest, I don't believe I would stand a chance against you! But after seeing that you have a very kind and pure heart, I have a task to ask of you..."

The Professor went over to a machine near his desk that had 4 Pokéballs resting behind a glass case. He pressed a button, causing the glass to sink into a crevasse before picking up a Pokéball on the far left. With the Pokéball in hand, he walked back over and handed it to me. I took the Pokéball and examined it closely, seeing that there was a Pokémon already inside of it. I heard Merida murmur softly as I tossed it, releasing the Pokémon inside. The Pokémon was...a blob. It was two shades of purple - a lighter purple on top and a darker shade on the bottom. Two green sacs were on both of its sides, four antennae on its head, and a squiggled line as its mouth. It looked up at me with its small, beady eyes, a look of uncertainty visible in it. I never saw anything like it before...but it was sort of cute, whatever it was. I began slithering around my feet, using its antennae to feel at my legs.

"This is Goomy," Sycamore began to explain as Merida began to poke it with her stick-wand "It's considered to be the weakest Dragon type Pokémon in Kalos, so not a lot of Trainers bother with catching and raising it."

I knelt down and rubbed its head, slightly shivering at its smooth yet slimy and moist skin. I noticed Chester and Genji come over to take a closer look; Calem and Shauna seemed interested in the blob-dragon as well, but Shauna wasn't too eager to get any closer to it. "Is it really a weak Dragon type? I mean, it may look like its incapable, but I thought all Dragon types were pretty strong regardless of what it is."

"They are," Sycamore nodded "but it's a bit of a different story for this little one. Goomy is considered to be one of the hardest Pokemon to raise - even most Veterans have trouble raising one. It's the least popular Dragon type here in Kalos - you don't see a lot of Trainers with these." Sycamore knelt down near Goomy, who was using its antennae to feel my hand. "I found this one wandering in one of the alleys here in the city. She had been abandoned by a former Trainer and was left to fend for herself. She was dirty, malnourished and dehydrated by the time I found her, so I caught her, brought her back to the lab and nurtured her back to health. But she's so docile and grew distrustful of people after being abandoned that we spent weeks trying to gain her trust. Unfortunately, with all of my work, I don't have the time to properly raise her. So, this is my request, Kat." He looked up at me before motioning at Goomy. "Would you take her with you and raise it? I feel as though you will be able to raise her with the proper care and give her the love that she deserves."

I looked at Goomy again, who was inspecting Merida now. They were getting along just fine - Merida was showing off some tricks by making various shapes from fire using her wand while Goomy watched and did what looked like a dance each time Merida finished a trick. "It really bugs me whenever a Pokémon gets tossed aside or abandoned because it's 'too hard to raise.' REAL Trainers would take their time to raise a Pokémon no matter how difficult it is to raise. All Pokémon have hidden potential that they have yet to bring out, and it's up to the Trainer to have the ability to do that. Beisdes..." I stood up and smiled. "Having a Dragon type would be pretty awesome. I think I can handle Goomy just fine."

"Excellent! I knew I could count on you," Sycamore exclaimed with a bright smile on his face. "Now, the rest of you, come here and pick out your second Pokémon, if you will. You have all earned it."Sycamore ushered the rest of the gang to the last three Pokéballs in the machine. It turns out that he was planning on giving us the starter Pokémon from Kanto if he deemed us worthy. I almost regretted taking Goomy instead of getting one of the other starters, but I quickly casted that feeling aside after seeing her follow Merida around, almost as if she looked up to my partner. I decided to name Goomy Vivian, and began the process of getting the Pokémon used to its new nickname. Fortunately, that didn't take long - Vivian responded to me after I called it 3 or 4 times before realizing I was talking to her. I then filled her Pokédex page and read up on her stats and current move-set. Vivian was considerably weak - around where I had first got Merida, to be more accurate. I was going to have to take some extra time out to train it, but since I have the Exp. Share on, that shouldn't be too much of a problem.

It didn't take too long for everyone else to pick their Pokémon - Calem, Shauna and Trevor had each picked a Kanto starter that suited their liking. Calem chose Charmander, Shauna chose Squirtle, and Trevor chose Bulbasuar. Professor Sycamore then gave me a few quick tips on taking proper care of Vivian - she has to be hydrated at all times so she won't dry out, so I will have to go to a local shop and buy a few bottles of water for her when I get the chance. He then told us to have fun and strive to be the best Trainers we could be, as well as to make sure to have fun travelling with each other and out Pokémon.

"I also have one more request to ask of you," he said "I would require your assistance to solve one of the biggest mysteries in Kalos..."

"It wouldn't happen to me Mega Evolution, would it Professor?" Trevor asked.

I tilted my head in confusion. "'Mega Evolution'?"

Sycamore decided to take over. "Ah, Kat hasn't heard of it, but that's to be expected. Allow me to explain, or, at least explain what we know so far. You see, Mega Evolution is a type of evolution where Pokémon we previously thought couldn't evolve anymore can achieve a new form while in battle. We don't know what triggers this, but we DO know that two very important things are needed: an item called a Mega Stone, and a strong bond between the Pokémon and its Trainer." Sycamore nodded at Calem, who pulled out a silver case and held it out for everyone to see. He opened it, revealing a perfectly round stone with black and blue swirls - it kinda looked like a big marble. "This is one of the many Mega Stones we have yet to find. I believe this one is called 'Charizardite X'."

"We all have one," Trevor added "I have the Venusaurite and Shauna has the Blastoisite. So it looks like these Pokémon will be able to Mega Evolve."

"That is correct," Sycamore said "but if you want to investigate Mega Evolution, I would suggest going to Camphrier Town? It's a town full of history, so you may find a clue, or you may not. Whether or not anyone there actually has any leads regarding Mega Evolution, it's still a good start." He then faced all of us. "Now, listen...as you travel, you will see Pokémon that have other ways of living, and people with many ways of thinking. It's important for you all to learn to accept the different ways of living and thinking, even if it conflicts with yours. Try to remember what's really important and not cloud your vision with your ideals and reject those who don't agree with you. As long as you remember this on your journey, you will truly broaden your horizons."

"I like to believe that being different makes us all special in some way," Calem said as he petted his new Charmander "I want to set myself apart from other Trainers, but if you really think about it, I'm probably in a class of my own. And I believer mastering Mega Evolution will set myself further apart from other Trainers, so I'm going to work hard to solve its mysteries!"

"Regardless of what we decide to do, we should remember that we're all friends!" Shauna exclaimed "After all, that's one of the main perks of travelling - to meet other people and make new friends, whether they be people or Pokémon, it's always important to never traverse these long roads alone. That's why I'm glad I am able to travel with you all!"

"And...we grow from our experience and learn from our mistakes," I added "You may even discover something about yourself that you would have never known about until you step out into the world and see everything from a different point of view. You are in charge of creating the path that you want to take, and wherever it leads to is determined by the choices you will make along the way. And the person you will become afterwards is a reflection of the path you took during your journey."

Sycamore nodded with approval. He then wished us a safe and fun journey, and he gave Calem and I badge cases after learning that we are both participating in the League. We said our goodbyes and went back towards the elevator, but all of us couldn't leave at the same time. Due to the elevator's odd design and it's small size, a maximum of 3 people could fit in at a time (this included Pokémon, so we returned all of ours to their respective Pokéballs for the time being). We decided to let Shauna, Tierno and Trevor go down first, and Calem and I would follow after they got off. The elevator made its second trip back up to the third floor after dropping the first half of us off, and Calem and I boarded the small car and proceeded down to the first floor.

"So, what are you doing afterwards?" Calem asked once we were in the elevator.

I checked my watch - it was 5:38pm. "I was gonna make my way to Camphrier Town, if there's enough time. I was kinda hoping to explore Lumiose for the rest of the day, but with this blackout going on, it wouldn't be as fun since there's a lot of stuff we can't do and a lot of places we won't be able to go. I think it would be better if we come back later...What about you?"

"I was going to do the same, actually," he replied "but depending on what time it is, I was going to stay the night here and then leave tomorrow. Anyway, the reason why I asked is because I want to talk to you in private." The elevator finally stopped on the first floor as I gave Calem a quizzical look. "Can you meet me at-"

"Oh! There they are!" Calem was cut off when we heard Sina's voice from the other side of the lobby. The rest of the gang was with her, standing before a man with wild orange hair and a full beard that was nicely trimmed compared to his hair, which stood up wildly. He wore a black suit with the jacket having orange borders, black cut gloves and shoes. He seemed to be someone of importance, by the looks of it. "Calem, Kat, come over here, would you? There's someone who wants to meet you."

We exchanged glances before we walked over to the rest of the group. As soon as we got there, I noticed that the man was eyeing us, his expression callous and hard to read. It unnerved me a bit, and I noticed that Calem had saw it too, but we said nothing about it.

"I see. So they too received a Pokédex from Augustine-I mean, the Professor. Wonderful! You two are the chosen ones, I see. I am curious as to what kind of potential you really have, especially since you were handpicked by the Professor himself. Allow me to introduce myself - I am Lysandre. All my life, I've dedicated myself to learn as much as I can about Pokémon and people so that I can build a brighter tomorrow. Professor Sycamore has taught me many things over the years, which I have and still continue to use to this very day." He noticed the Holo Casters clipped to our bags. "Oh, I see you also have Holo Casters! I designed and manufactured them, you see. I hope they have proved to be of use...Knowledge is power, after all. I hope you use it wisely. Now listen, all of you - it is vital that this world becomes a better place. People and Pokémon who were chosen to make this world more ideal have to work tirelessly to make that dream a reality. This world...it is covered with filth. The world that we - that I - desire is a more beautiful world. A world that is cleansed of all forms of filth, where all beauty is eternal and strife is nonexistent. That is...my desire." He turned towards Sina, a small smile on his face. "Well then, I will take my leave. Give Augustine my regards." And with that, he left without another word.

"You have to wonder what kind of world Lysandre desires," Sina mused "Kalos is a big region, home to many different Pokémon and people. I believe the Pokédex will allow you all to gain a better understanding of each of them." Sina had some business to attend to, so she left the lab and went who knows where, leaving the 5 of us to wonder just what the heck happened.

"...Okaaay. That happened," Shauna said, finally breaking the silence.

"Lysandre is pretty intimidating, isn't he?" Tierno added "He seems like the kind of guy you would want to stay on his good side at all times."

"Tell me about it," Trevor said "and to think that kind of guy is associated with the Professor...Kinda hard to believe that he used to be one of his students." Regardless of if he was Sycamore's student or not, Tierno had a good point about him being intimidating. I couldn't get over that way he eyed Calem and I, as if he already knew who we were. I mean, there's a difference between hearing about someone and then meeting them afterwards, but he made it seem like he knew more than what he was letting on, but he could hide it so well that it was hard for me to search through him. Maybe I'm just reading too much into it. I just know that I didn't want to run into him anytime soon...

"Sooo...what's everyone going to do now?" I asked, trying to get rid of the awkwardness.

"I'm going to go make a PR Video and post it on my profile!" Shauna said just as she release Chester and Squirtle form their Pokéballs "I'm gonna have Chester and Tiptup be in one with me too! See you guys later~" And with that, Shauna gleefully bounded out of the lab with Chester and Tiptup at her heels.

"...Did she _honestly_ name Squirtle Tiptup of all things?"

"That's Shauna for you," Calem laughed, then turned towards me "Anyway, as I was saying earlier, can you meet me at Café Soleil? It's not far from here...just exit the lab and keep going left. The route leading to Camphrier Town is in that direction too, so it's all convenient. Lumiose City is a big place, but as long as you stay on the main streets, you should be fine. I'll be waiting out in front for you, okay?"

"Sure, no problem. See you then." Calem waved at us before leaving the lab, heading towards the café.

"I wonder what that's all about?" I heard Tierno whisper to Trevor.

"Dunno," the boy replied "but it must be important if they gotta meet in private." I walked out of the building, allowing the boys to speculate why Calem and I were meeting at the café. To be honest, I was a bit curious on why Calem wanted to speak to me in private anyway; what was so important that he just needed to talk to me alone. Well, there was only one way to find out, I guess.

I followed Calem's directions and went left as soon as I left the lab and continued down that way. The evening hours were beginning to set in - the sky was starting to turn orange, but there was still some blue left in it. There were a lot of people out walking around, but I also noticed a lot of road blocks and city works standing near them to make sure no one would sneak past into the other half of the city. I still couldn't understand what would cause more than half of the city to lose power, and why it hasn't been resolved yet. I guess we would just have to wait until it all blows over, I guess. I finally saw Calem standing outside waiting in front a deep red building with a few tables sitting out in front of it.

"You made it here pretty fast," Calem noted as I approached.

"Well there's really no else for me to go right now," I replied "Might as well come straight here." We entered the café, only to stop in our tracks when we saw Lysandre in there as well, but he was talking to someone. That someone was a beautiful young woman wearing an elegant white coat and outfit underneath, these weird wing accessories on her back and a purse hanging idly from her hand. I still say Mom is prettier, though. However, the two being there was causing a bit of a commotion in the coffee-scented building. Patrons that were already in there were too busy watching them while murmuring and whispering amongst themselves about to two."Hey...isn't that...isn't that the famous actress Diantha?"

Calem nodded." You're right. I wonder what they're talking about..."

I scanned the café and spotted a booth near the left side of the wall that was moderately close to the two, but it also hide us from plain sight. "Let's sit in that booth over there. That way we can at least hear what they're saying without being so obvious."

"Good idea." We went over to the booth and sat in it, and even ordered some drinks to make it look like we were being normal. We sat there for about a minute before we directed our ears towards the two adults to listen in on their conversation.

"...would I want to play same old roles forever? I do enjoy playing them, but over time they will become tedious, tiresome and a bit boring." That was Diantha's voice. "Youth may be beautiful and fun, but that's not everything there is to life. Everything will change over time, and I want to change as I grow older and wiser over the course of years. It would be nice to keep my youth forever, yes, but everything will eventually come to an end. It is the law of life after all, and we do not have that right to change nor alter it. So, I look forward to playing other roles as I get older, and hopefully retire when I hit my golden years to just sit back and enjoy the rest of my life."

Lysandre spoke next. "You were chosen to be a star on the silver screen, correct? Isn't it your duty to be beautiful at all times? I believe that all beauty should have that right to stay that way forever. I want to make shape this world into a place where beauty is unchanging and lasts for an eternity. And yet, it seems as though the more I try, more filth just continues to gather. I can't stand the thought of the world becoming any uglier, and it breaks my heart to see that no one isn't doing anything about it. No matter what it takes, I shall reshape the world for the benefit of everyone, even if I have to stand alone while doing so. This is what I was chosen to do, and I will fulfill my duty one way or another. But I find your work admirable, Diantha. You dedicate your life to making people happy with your amazing acting. If only the rest of the world were like you...What a beautiful place it would be."

The sound of Lysandre's shoes steadily hitting the floor was enough for us to get back in our seats and try to act natural. He already freaked us out earlier, twice in one day would be too much. Fortunately, Lysandre didn't notice us in the booth - or the constant mumbling in the background - and kept walking until he walked out of the café. Calem and I released our breath and finally relaxed - if it wasn't obvious enough, that guy made us uneasy.

"That was close," Calem murmured.

"Tell me about it," I said "But, ya gotta wonder what that guy's deal is. Why does he want to change to world so that it will forever remain unchanging?"

"You got me." Calem sat back and folded his arms. "You would think that a world like that would be good, y'know? But if everything just lasts forever...I would get tired of living, honestly. What reason would life have at that point?"

"There won't be a point, and that's why I'm glad the world - and people - can change. I mean, the world around us already changes, right? The seasons change every year, new continents are probably being made right now, and people and Pokémon are changing too. Pokémon evolve over time, and people grow older over the years...and once their time is up, babies are born and go through the same cycle. But if there's anything that every living creature on this planet has in common, is that they try to live life to its fullest. And...it's only when we all come together in unity and work together in harmony is when the world becomes beautiful."

"Well, that makes two of us, then." We looked up to see Diantha standing near out table. I would have freaked out over the fact that she spoke to us if I wasn't fully aware that she was here. "I'm sorry, but I couldn't help but to overhear your conversation. I take it that you heard Lysandre's words just a little while ago?"

"I'm pretty sure the entire café heard him," Calem said "but it's still a touchy subject."

"I agree. Though, I hope you don't get the wrong idea about Lysandre. He's a kind man, but also very passionate about his cause, though I sometimes wonder if he's a bit misguided..." She suddenly paused and looked at me closely. "Oh my! Are you Kat?"

I nodded. "That's me. And this is my friend Calem."

"I am very glad to meet you both, truly, " the actress said as she shook our hands. "I recognized you from a _Trainer's Weekly_ article, Kat. I heard you had an astonishing win against Viola the day after you started your journey. But I also know you because of your mother - I used to be a big Rhyhorn Racing fan, but I've been so busy making movies that I barely have the time to see her race! I do hope I will be able to watch Grace when she participates in the International League next year."

I shrugged. "We can only hope."

"By the way, you two are Trainers, correct? Do you mind if I take a look at your Pokémon?" We had no reason to say no, so Calem and I released our starters from their Balls. Diantha expected them both one after another - Genji seemed more prideful than he was as a Froakie, and stuck out his chest a bit as the star inspected him. She then looked over Merida, who was more reserved than Genji and stood there calmly. After a moment, Diantha stood up straight and looked satisfied. "Yes, your Pokémon are being raised well, and they look so happy to be by your side!" A beeping sound suddenly emanated from the Holo Caster clipped to Diantha's purse. She looked at it before, frowned, then let it fall before giving us an apologetic look. Ah, I have to apologize. I'm needed out in Laverre City. We're shooting scenes for the next movie coming out in a few months...I haven't been able to have a lot of time to myself since then. Anyway, I am also a Trainer on my off time, so I hope we will be able to battle the next time we meet. Au revoir!" And then she left, leaving a crowd of disappointed fans at her wake. Calem and I watched her leave before we laughed - out of all the weird things that happened today, that made up for it.

"It's just one thing after another, isn't it?" I shook my head "I guess we were fortunate enough to speak to Diantha in person, huh?"

"Definitely," Calem agreed "Shauna would be incredibly jealous right now - she's a HUGE fan of Diantha. I should have gotten an autograph and flaunt it around."

"And add fuel to the fire? I don't think so. By the way...what was it that you wanted to talk about?"

Calem stared at me with a blank expression on his face before he blinked and scratched the side of his nose with his finger. "...Uh...I forgot, actually...That whole thing with Diantha and Lysandre kinda threw me off. Sorry about that..."

I waved my hand dismissively. "Don't worry about it. If it was important, then it'll come back to you sooner or later."

"I hope so." Genji made a noise that sounded like a cross between a murmur and a croak from under the table. Calem made a face afterwards, as if he was trying to focus on what Genji was trying to say, but couldn't quite figure it out. It was when he started rubbing the back of his head when I realized it was more than that.

"Hey, you okay?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah. It's just..." he tapped the side of his glass contemplating, as if he was trying to find the words to speak. "Okay, I have to tell this to someone, but keep it to yourself, okay?" I nodded. "...It started yesterday. Whenever Genji speaks, I get this...'pressure' on the back of my head. Not on my actual head, but inside the skull...on my brain. It doesn't hurt but...it feels like something trying to either get in or get out - I can't tell which. Then...when I got to the Professor's lab today, Genji and I were reading some of the text books in the lobby when he spoke again. And I swear...I _swear_ I heard his voice. Not like you and I heard it just now, but actual words. But I couldn't...I couldn't fully hear what he said...I got a few bits from it - it was almost like my brain was acting like a radio, only receiving pieces of a broadcast because of a low signal or something. I don't know...you probably think I'm weird now..."

Oh Arceus...so I'm not crazy after all. "No, no, I don't. I believe you."

Calem looked up form his glass and looked at me with surprise in his eyes. "Really? So, you don't think I'm going crazy?"

"No. Because...because the same thing happened to me today as well." Calem's eyes widened, but I continued. "See, remember when I told you guys how I found Flabébé? It happened then when I was trying to convince it to come with me - the same exact thing that happened to you happened to me, except I heard Merida's voice." I felt Merida's paw on my hand, and I looked over at her to see that she was looking at me with a mix of confusion and worry. I smiled at her, letting her know that I was okay before I spoke again. "I thought that it was my imagination. I thought that my mind was just playing tricks on me or something...but now that I know that the same thing occurred with you, I'm confident that what happened was real. It _has_ to be."

"You don't think...you don't think we can...communicate with Pokémon, do you?"

"I have no idea..." I leaned back in the booth and frowned. "But if that were true, then wouldn't we be able to communicate with them before now? I mean, doesn't something like that start early on when you're young?"

"Hm...you're right..." Calem rubbed his chin as Genji climbed into the booth next to his Trainer. "But, you know, maybe we weren't able to when we were young. Or...what if we needed to create a stronger bond with a Pokémon before we could discover this 'ability'."

"That makes sense," I nodded "It would explain why we can only hear the voice of our starters and no other Pokémon..." Silence. Neither of us spoke up about the matter for the longest second, the only noise were the other patrons in the café talking amongst themselves. "Do we ask the Professor about it?"

"No," Calem shook his head "not right now. We don't even know if this is real or not. I think it would be better if we wait and see where this goes...If it continues and we actually can communicate with our Pokémon, then we ask him. But if it was just a strange phenomena that only occurred this one time, then we shouldn't even bother."

"I guess you're right," I sighed. No sense in arguing with that kind of logic. "By the way...did you give Charmander a nickname yet?"

"Yeah," Calem said "I named him Spyro - I couldn't think of anything clever at that time."

I blinked. To be honest, Calem doesn't seem like the kind of guy who would play video games a lot on his free time. "You play Spyro?"

"Yeah! It's one of my favorite series in fact. I never got a chance the play any of the recent ones though..."

"I only played like, one or two of the more recent installments. Then again I was never really into Spyro all that much. I like RPG's and collect-a-thons more. I tried playing first-person shooters, but they're really not my thing."

"I hate first-person shooters, with the exception of _Bioshock_ and maybe _Battlefield_, but that's it.. They seem so tedious and repetitive at times and I lose interest in it after a while. I play a lot of RPG's - I don't know how many hours I've wasted on _World of Warcraft, Final Fantasy_ and _League of Legends_ in my spare time. Then again, the only thing I really do is grind on levels and items, and I usually turn out to be a bit overpowered by the time I actually start playing the game."

"That's me in_ Fire Emblem_ and _Etrian Odyssey_. I feel like I won't be properly prepared for anything unless I spend two or three hours grinding and gaining levels. That's probably why a lot of people try to form guilds with me in the _League of Legends_ servers..."

"I don't find guilds to be that useful if I want to be honest. By the way, do you play _Minecraft_?"

"All the time! I tried building a recreation of the Temple of Time from _Legend of Zelda_, but I abandoned it after a while."

"You play Zelda too? I love it -_ Majora's Mask_ was my favorite."

"_A Link to the Past_ and _Wind Waker_ for me. Though I _have_ been playing _Skyward Sword_ a lot..." I don't know how, but Calem and I started talking about video games for the next couple of hours. Turns out we had a lot in common, and not just the video games. We liked most of the same movies, TV shows, books, food, music...you name it. We spent hours talking with each other in the café, not realizing the time had flown by until our Pokémon were showing signs of tiredness. That and the manager had to shoo us out because we were the last ones in during closing time. It was night when we finally emerged from the building - looking at one of the street clocks, it was approximately 9:27pm. I guess my trip to Camphier town would have to wait until tomorrow then. The conversations didn't stop after we left the café - they continued as we walked down the street to the Pokémon Center. This time they were about...well, anything a normal teenager would talk about. Calem even opened up a little and told me about his parents, who were seasoned Veteran Trainers that challenged the Pokémon League at one point. They retired shortly after they got married though, mainly because Calem's mom was pregnant with him at the time. When Calem started school, his parents taught him everything they knew regarding Pokémon, battling and raising them. He knows that they, and everyone else in Vaniville Town, expect him to be as powerful as they were back in their travelling days. Calem isn't entirely sure if he wants to do that, but he does know that he wants to set himself apart from other Trainers and find his own strength, not rely on what his parents gave him. I could see where he was coming from - many people wanted me to follow either Mom or Dad's footsteps and become a Rhyhorn Rider or a Pokémon Ranger. Mom and Dad trained me for both, but I honestly wanted to be a normal Trainer and travel. I don't even know if I even want a career, but I guess I'd probably discover some sort of secret talent while I'm out here...who knows?

We eventually made it to the Center and had our Pokémon checked on (this was becoming a habit) before we got our rooms. We were bunked with each other once we got our Pokémon back - Calem shared a room with Tierno and Trevor while I shared a room with Shauna. Calem and I said our goodnights to each other before retreating into the rooms, and I was surprised to see that Shauna was already in bed asleep with Chester and Tiptup at her side. I then realized that it was after 10 o' clock, so she probably turned in a little while ago. I didn't want to wake her up, so I held off on taking a shower until tomorrow; instead I changed into some sleeping clothes and decided to mess around on my laptop. Merida was lying on my lap watching videos with me for a while before she rolled over and went to sleep. I followed suit minutes later after plugging the laptop to its charger on the desk. I thought about calling Mom, but I was already lying down and I didn't feel like reaching those couple of inches to my bag where the device was hanging off of (yeah, I was lazy). I made a mental note to call her sometime tomorrow before I closed my eyes and let sleep take over.

. . .

_P. 12_

_Chapter 1: The Tribes_

_"A long, long time ago, back when Kalos was only a continent of land with tiny colonies and villages, a kingdom began to flourish on top of its soil._

_The kingdom grew and grew, making it one of the biggest in the world at that time. The kingdom was ruled by a mighty king and his Pokémon companion, and more and more people flocked to his empire._

_However, unknown to many people, three tribes also flourished during this time. The tribes and the tribespeople themselves were known as the "Children of the Earth."_

_The Children were given this name because of their close bond with the earth and the Pokémon in them, but many believed that they were in close relations with the Legendaries. This is because they lived under the watchful eyes of Kalos' three deities: Xerneas, the giver of Life. Yveltal, the bringer of Death. And Zygarde, the sentinel of Order. And, in such, the tribes were named the Xenec, the Yvaol, and the Zyanae._

_The Xenec were known as the gardeners, breeders and caretakers. They took care of the land and help preserve nature whilst caring Pokémon who were ill, injured, or didn't have the strength to fend for themselves. They were the preservers of all life, and watched over the land day and night. The Xenec saw all life as precious and invaluable, whether it be a plant to living being, everyone is given the right to live. You only live for one time, and they knew this, so they dedicate their lives to watch over every single one of Mew's children; It didn't matter if the person or Pokémon was good or bad, it was cared for regardless. Because of their unlimited kindness to all living creatures, they were in constant conflict with the Yvaol. They were said to have strong connections with mostly Normal, Grass, Bug, Water and Fairy type Pokémon._

_The Yvaol were the guardians of the dead and dying. They had a strong belief that souls couldn't part with the world of the living unless they were guided into the afterlife where their souls either passed on, or suffered an eternal Hell. They stayed in close vicinity of graveyards and burial sites where people and Pokémon were laid to rest. They did not fear death - the Yvaol saw death as a "checkpoint" - life was a privilege given to a soul to test its worth for the afterlife later on. If the soul turned out to be a good person and had little to no sins, they were blessed with crossing over into a peaceful afterlife in the heavens. But if the soul was sinful throughout it's life, then the soul was either consumed by Yveltal or sent to Giratina for its eternal torment. Wandering souls are considered to be beings who died when it wasn't their time, so the Yvoal take it amongst themselves to guide those lost ones into the Spirit World, where they could be given a second chance at rebirth as a different being. And there were times where they took matters into their own hands, taking the lives of individuals who didn't seem worthy enough to live through their eyes. This act has caused them to be on bad terms with the Xenec, who valued all life. It is rumored that they are able to connect with Ghost, Dark, Fire, Ice and Psychic types._

_And finally, the Zyanae were the agents of order and justice. The Xenec and the Yvaol had a known habit of conflicting with each other since they had conflicting views about life and death. Whenever the Xenec and Yvaol clash, the Zyanae quickly stepped in and brought order to the two feuding tribes. They have made it their duty to bring order to the land whenever it sinks into disarray. If the natural order suddenly becomes unbalanced, if the ecosystem around them has very little or too many resources, or if there is ever the threat of war due to the feuding tribes, the Zyanae work tirelessly to bring balance back to the land. They worked together with Pokémon to bring harmony to the world, but the people in Kalos needed them more, so they protected the people and the Pokémon of this land from self-destruction. Because of this, the Zyanae were admired by the people in the empire, and it is said that the king even recruited tribesman to be his knights due to their strong will to protect and serve those around them. They were rumored to bond mostly with Dragon and Fighting types._

_Despite their differences, these tribes shared one thing in common: their closeness with Pokémon, especially their respective deities. It has been said that these tribes had an ability that normal humans didn't possess - they were able to communicate with Pokémon. This was found out when some of the king's knights noticed a Zyanae openly talking to his Pokémon. It was dismissed in an instant though - back then, talking to Pokémon wasn't out of the ordinary. But it was when the Zyanae knight showed signs of being able to understand his Pokémon's language. When confronted about it, the knight calmly answered "We are the Children of the Earth. We share a special connection with Pokémon that no other human would be able to understand. We were given life by our Lords and Lady to care for this land and its creatures who walk on its soil. We were blessed with the gift of communication to enforce unity and harmony between Pokémon and people, so that we may gain a better understanding of each other to build a brighter tomorrow for future generations." Further investigations of the Xenec, Yvaol and Zyanae to find out if this were true or not led to the discovery of this rare ability amongst all the tribespeople in all three tribes. When asked to translate the speech of a Pokemon, they were always accurate with the translation. The ability could also be inherited by offspring, but it was only limited to those of the three tribes._

_After the war and after the three deities were casted into a deep slumber, the tribespeople found themselves unable to live on the land that they had once called home. The land had been damaged and stripped of nearly every resource - even the Zyanae couldn't restore the land to its natural state. With no other option, the tribespeople were forced to relocate, and were left to wander around the dead and dying landscape. The Xenec, Yvaol and Zyanae were said to have split up and scattered everywhere, even across seas. And with them they took their legacy, burying their history with the rest of time...until now."_

* * *

**E/N:** Just so no one will get confused or ask me questions later, Xenec is pronounced "zeh-nek," Yvoal is "Yee-vah-oul," and Zyanae is "Zai-ahn-aye."

Yup, Kat's second team member is Goomy. I kept hearing that Goomy was pathetically weak in its first form, but it becomes a beast once it evolves. I'm currently raising one for myself, and I have to say, people weren't lying when they said it was pretty much useless in its first form, but it does get better once it evolves into Sliggoo and Goodra. And after seeing that it has a base stat of 600 when it fully evolves, I became very glad that I picked one up. And I believe that's why they're available when you're heading to Laverre Town - my team is usually in the 40's regarding levels, so Goomy would've evolved into Sliggoo by the time you reached the town and beat the Gym Leader there. I gave it to Kat this early on because...well, as it was said before, Sycamore wants to see if Kat can raise the cute li'l blob into the almighty beast that is Goodra. I was considering about letting Kat catch one when she was on her way to Laverre Town when they're accessible, then changed my mind. It would be better to give it too her early where it's no stronger than your starter when you first get it, and see if she is able to raise it form there. Dragon types are difficult to raise, especially this early in the game, so I thought it would be a good way to test Kat's abilities as a Trainer.

Also, I decided to let Calem, Shauna and Trevor have the Kanto starters. Even though Sycamore tells Calem/Serena and Shauna to pick theirs after you receive yours, they never show up when you battle them again, even though it's implied that they both get one in the lab. And I believe Trevor deserves one of them - I like Trevor.

The conversation between Calem and Kat sorta wrote itself after the Spyro bit. I refused to believe that Calem/Serena tells you to meet them at the café JUST so they can tell you that they want to compete with you to see who's the strongest. If that were the case, then they could've told you while you were still in the lab or through the Holo Caster if you weren't around. Why make it a private thing? I almost believed I was being asked out on a date on my first playthrough! *Ahem* Anyway...yeah, that's why I didn't include that bit after the Diantha encounter. I want Calem and Kat to becomes actual friends and not just rivals.

I didn't write a lot down regarding Lumiose City because you're limited to what you can do after you arrive there. Really, the only thing you can do is talk to the people in the café and go to a few shops and that's it. I usually skip the city after doing everything important and go on the Route 5, but I will dedicate two chapters to Lumiose City after the blackout to make up for it.

What's that passage about towards the end? And why did the mystery person in the second chapter said there were two tribes and not three? All will be explained later :3

[Edit] Fixed some mistakes. Changed Goomy's name from Imogen to Vivian instead.


	6. Breaking the Boundary

**A/N:** Chapter became delayed after an unexpected family emergency turned up yesterday. Hopefully I can get back into my usual pace.

I heard Sycamore's voice in both dubs of the anime the other day. No French accent, but I can't find too much of a difference between his English and Japanese voice actors. i know there's a clear difference unless they found a person who can do both English and Japanese, but I doubt it. He sounds a lot better than how I first imagined his voice sounded though...

* * *

Note to self: buy Merida a blanket of her own the next time I stop by in a shop later on. I found out the hard way that Merida is a blanket-hog; I only had the corner of the bed's duvet on me by the time I woke up this morning. I wasn't mad at her, but I won't lie and say that I wasn't annoyed by it. Still, I gently tapped her to wake her up so we could get the day started. It was 10:44 in the morning by the time we woke up; Shauna was already up grooming Chester and Electra, still wrapped in a towel after getting out of the shower moments ago. She told me it was free, so I got ready to take my own shower. I then remembered reading the article on Goomy care on my laptop last night - they prefer swampy areas because it was a wet environment, and they're usually found in a body of water, and are most active when its raining. I released Vivian from her Pokéball after turning the shower one, deciding that it would be better to just kill two Pidgey with one stone and let her bathe with me. She seemed a bit confused about what was going on after she was let out, but calmed down after seeing me and detecting the water from the shower. I'll be honest, it was kinda weird bathing with a Pokémon; They're not animals who are indifferent as to whether you're naked or not - they _know_ what it means to be naked for us and they have no problems letting us know, so you can understand why I felt a bit awkward...Not that it really mattered - I had to sit on my knees on the shower floor while I washed her with just water. I didn't need to use soap since her skin is able to repel dirt on its own. Just using any kind of soap or shampoo would strip her body of that slimy membrane, making her exposed to literally everything harmful. I haven't had a lot of time to properly bond with Vivian yet, so I used this time in the shower to talk to her a bit, letting her know that I wasn't going to be like her previous Trainer.

"I don't see why anyone would just abandon you," I said out loud, rubbing in between her antennae "You're a sweet girl."

Vivian rubbed her antennae against my left cheek while trying to nuzzle my face. "Ooorruuu.." There it was again. That pressure that I felt yesterday, but it was much, much stronger than before. It felt like what ever force was trying to enter or exit my brain was close to breaking out, and my head felt like a balloon ready to pop. I felt like I was about to pass out, but I managed to keep my composure and ignore it. That didn't mean I feel awful because of it - I thought I was going to puke. I believe Vivian noticed something was wrong and nuzzled my face with her nose(?). I patted her and said I was fine, and continued with washing her.

Despite the fact that the Professor said Vivian was distrustful of humans, she seem to like some sort of interaction with someone - at least, that how I see it. Perhaps this is only because I'm showing her that I actually care about her, and not acting like the jackass who abandoned her. I finished up the shower pretty quickly - I was mostly trying to get Vivian clean, so I didn't really have the time to worry about my body. Something kinda funny happened after I stepped out of the shower though; Merida was standing in front of the mirror using a brush I had bought for her to groom her fur. It wasn't so much odd as it was fascinating and cool - Pokémon are a lot like humans in more ways than one, and I believe that they're more advanced than we would ever be. I let her do her thing while I went back into the room to get dressed. Shauna was already dressed, with the exception of her hair not being in those weird ponytails (I thought she looked better with her hair hanging down). She was giving Electra her morning brushing while Chester (now a Quilladin) and Tiptup were playing with each other. I asked her if she was going to the next town or staying here as I put on my clothes.

"Well I have to at this point," she told me "Mostly everything in the city is blocked off except for one of the avenues and a plaza, and there's nothing interesting going on there. Well, except for a boutique and a store that sells evolutionary stones, but that's it."

"It doesn't take that long to get to Camphrier Town, does it?" I asked, deciding to look my map for once. The next route was Route 5 leading to Camphrier, but it looked very short compared to the other Routes I've been on so far.

"It takes an hour to get there on foot," Shauna explained "It's not so much of a Route as it is a place for Skaters to go there and practice and stuff. Honestly, besides that, there's nothing else really there. I believe Camphrier Town is so close to Lumiose because there isn't a school there. That's what I heard, anyway. So the kids walk here to attend school, so they set up a lot of stuff for the students there so they can hang out when they leave school."

I noticed Merida coming out of the bathroom out of the corner of my eye as I kept looking at my map. Now that I thought about it, there were a_ lot_ of kids and teenagers walking around in the streets when I entered the city yesterday, and there are at least 2 or 3 schools in the entire city. But with this blackout going on, that meant that the school had to close until further notice. And at least half of those students are Trainers, so we might be doing a lot of battling on Route 5.

"Aren't the schools shut down because of the blackout?"

Shauna was in the process of pinning up her hair. "All except one, but it's just an elementary school. Most of the high schools and colleges are closed though."

"So that means there are going to be a lot of Trainers on the next Route, right?"

"Probably. Why do you ask?"

I put my map away before noticing Vivian sitting on my feet, looking up at me with an expectant look. "I need to train Vivian. She's way behind compared to Merida, remember?"

Chester started going through Shauna's bag (for food I guess), before she pulled it away, making him whine and reach for it. "Can't you just battle wild Pokemon and train her that way? It would be easier...wouldn't it?"

"It would, but Vivian would get more experience and grow faster if she battles against other Trainers," I explained "Pokémon that are with Trainers have more Effort Values than Pokémon in the wild. That's why it's better to battle more Trainers than Pokémon in the wild when you're trying to raise a weaker one. Besides..." I took out the Exp. Share from my bag. It was still on. "I can't rely on this thing forever. Vivian has hidden potential and I intend to bring it out and prove that she's not as weak and everyone says she is." I managed to get my feet from under Vivian before putting on my socks and shoes. It was going to be pretty warm out, so I decided to keep my cap off unless I really needed it.

"Well, they're your Pokémon. You train them in any way you think is right. That's what Calem told me, anyway." Shauna then twirled in front of the mirror - she was wearing this cute pink sundress with a creamy pink bow on the back, sandals and two more bows for her pigtails. "How do I look? I got this yesterday at the boutique I told you about."

"You must really love pink," I laughed, strapping my bag around my shoulder.

"It's my favorite color~!" Shauna sang as Electra climbed up to her shoulder, wearing a pink bow of her own around her neck. "See? It's Electra's favorite color too!"

"Pika-pikaa!"

I shook my head and laughed again. I noticed Merida was looking at the group with her arms crossed and a raised eyebrow before she shook her head as well. "That makes two of us, Merida."

"Braiiya."

_Shiing!_

Something popped - the world started spinning and my vision became blurry. A sharp pain pierced through my back of my skull and into my brain, and it spread as fast as a plague through the cranial muscle. I had a sudden shortness of breath and it became hard to breathe; I couldn't ignore it, not this time. I was on the verge of passing out but I'm thankful I was still sitting on the bed when it happened. The world around me wasn't even there, just an empty space around me as I gripped my head and hissed in pain. It felt like an eternity, but it only lasted for a full minute before it just vanished in the same way it came. All of it, just gone completely, as if it were never there to begin with. I became aware of my surroundings when I saw Shauna nudging my shoulder and calling my name with the Pokémon surrounding the bed. Merida was holding my hand in her paws, and Vivian was on my legs trying to get my attention. I told them I was fine and tried to wave them off, but Shauna and even Merida could see through my lie. She pressed me a little more and I told her that I gained a sudden headache, but I didn't want to worry them and kept it to myself - I wasn't going to tell her what really happened, not now. Shauna bought the story though, and went to go get some aspirin from the pharmacy. Merida was eyeing me carefully as we waited for her to come back; she knew I was lying. Vivian on the other hand was almost on the verge of tears, whining her head off. I held her in my lap and shushed her, letting her knows I was okay (she was surprisingly lightweight). Shauna eventually came back with a small bottle of Tylenol and some water. I took one of the pills while Shauna insisted that I keep the bottle just in case it happened again. I put the bottle in my bag, not wanting to stress her out anymore and said that I'll keep them on me.

"Are you sure you don't want to wait until tomorrow to leave?" Shauna pressed as we went into the lobby. "I mean, I can stay with you until then, that's totally fine with me! I just don't want you pushing yourself if you're sick..."

"Shauna, seriously, I'm FINE. The Tylenol is working and I don't feel sick, so please...stop worrying about me, okay? If I feel like I shouldn't be trying to leave town, then I will stay here in the Pokémon Center until I'm better." I told her. Shauna didn't like it, but she could tell that arguing with me was just pointless and dropped the subject as we exited the building. She then told me that she wanted to hang around the city a bit more before going to Camphrier Town. I told her I would meet up with her soon before we parted ways, even if she was reluctant to do so.

The gate leading out the Route 5 was almost in front of the Pokémon Center, so locating it wasn't hard at all (plus there was a large "5" stamped above the gate that was so conspicuous that you couldn't miss it anyway). We passed through the gate and entered Route 5; Just as Shauna said, there was a skate park just a few feet away from the gate, with plenty of grind rails surrounding it. Tall grass and patches of what looked like lavenders were everywhere, so filling up more pages to the Pokédex shouldn't be difficult. I started to walk down the road before Merida jumped in front of me and brandished her stick-wand, growling. I furrowed my brow at that before I noticed a blue bipedal jackal-like Pokémon charging directly at me. I used my Pokédex to identify it as a Lucario, a Pokémon originally from Sinnoh if i'm right. It slowed down when it saw Merida was blocking its path, but kept its attention on me before looking back at Merida.

_"Peace, mage. I only wish to see the Child."_ What the...they're mouths were moving, but I could hear their words somehow.

_"Who are you? What do you need with Kat?"_

_"Do you not feel it? The aura this girl emanates...she is whom I have been searching for."_

Merida paused, put her wand back into her tail, but still didn't move. Lucario took a step forward and looked Merida dead in her eye._ "I can assure you that I mean you nor her any harm. You have my word."_ Merida was still unsure, but stepped aside anyway. Vivian was huddled close to my legs as the Lucario approached and examined me from every side.

_"Yes...you are the one."_

"Ryu, wait up!" A girl with ridiculously long blonde hair wearing red and white skate gear rushed over with another Lucario at her heels. She skid to a stop and sighed when she reached us. "I'm so sorry! He wasn't bothering you, was he?" I shook my head. "Good. I was doing some special training with my Ryu and Lee, you see, and Ryu suddenly dashed off! I've been chasing him down for the last five minutes." She rubbed Ryu's (I assumed that was his name was) head while smiling. "Hey, I think Ryu likes you!"

I blinked. "You...you think so?"

The girl nodded. "See, Lucario have the ability to see and read someone's aura. I wonder if there's something in your aura that's attracted Ryu to you. He always gets worked up whenever he's training and battling with Lee, though. Perhaps it's just wants to find a Trainer skilled enough to challenge it. A lot of people who challenge them usually don't stand a chance. Oh jeez, there I go running my mouth again! I was on such a roll that I didn't even introduce myself! I'm Korrina, Shalour City's Gym Leader."

"I'm Kat," I said as I shook her hand, then motioned at Merida and Vivian. "And these are my partners Merida and Vivian."

"They both looked well raised. I hope I'll get to seem them in battle one day, but that's only if you're collecting Gym Badges...You wouldn't happen to be competing in the League, would you?"

I took out my case and showed her the Bug Badge. "I am, actually. I only has this one right now, though.."

"Cool! I'm the third Gym Leader if you're going in order, so I looked forward to our battle. Well, I better get back to training. Again, I apologize about Ryu."

I told her that it was fine before she skated off, Lee following right behind her. Ryu stayed put though, still eyeing me before I saw what looked like a faint smile appear on its lips.

_"I know you can hear me. We will meet again, but we will be on the same side when the time comes. Farewell."_ And then he ran off, trying to catch up to Korrina. I stood there in silence, still staring in the direction where they had came from and left to. Vivian finally came out from behind my legs and looked over at Merida, who didn't seem to be very trustful of the Lucario.

"I...I don't even...what just happened?"

"Braiaii.." came from Merida. I frowned, not being able to hear Merida's words anymore. She tilted her head at me and nudged my arm as she spoke again. Poke-speak was coming out of her mouth, but in my head I heard "Are you okay?" It was just like when I found Flabébé - I was hearing Merida, but unlike last time, it was as clear as day. Whatever she says I can understand it...but why? Then again...what happened at the Pokémon Center when she spoke that time, that pressure I kept feeling whenever she or Vivian spoke...could it be that the force that has been trying to enter my head finally broke through? And if so, what exactly is it? Where did it come form? Have I had this my entire life? And if not, why has this decided to come now? I need to talk to someone about this, and quick. I immediately grabbed my Holo Caster and dialed Calem's number. He answered after two rings, much to my relief. His holographic imaged appeared above the device, his smile seemingly got wider after seeing me.

"Hey Kat," he said a bit cheerfully "What's u-"

"It's happened," I babbled "It's real, it has to be. I don't think we're going insa-"

"Whoa! Kat, calm down! Start from the beginning and speak slowly...what happened?"

I took a deep breath to calm myself, then looked back at Calem's image. "Remember our talk last night at the café about the 'ability'?" He nodded. "I...something happened today and...it's real dude. I'm being dead serious. Merida spoke, but I could understand what she was saying!"

Calem frowned. "Wait, really? When did this happen?"

"It happened before just before I called you. What about you? Has Genji spoken to you yet? Could you hear him?"

Calem paused and looked off to the side, though I couldn't see what he was looking at. His eyes suddenly widened before he turned back to me, looking flustered. "Kat, where are you right now?"

"I'm on Route 5, but I'm still in front of the gate leading back into Lumiose. Why?"

"I'm in Camphrier Town's Pokémon Center. Get here as fast as you can, please. This is something we have to discuss face-to-face."

"I'll be there as soon as I can." I hung up and looked over at my partners. Merida was looking at me curiously while Vivian was plain confused. Even though this while deal was downright weird, I ended up smiling. I think our chance to understand Pokémon on a deeper level had finally shown itself.

. . .

"So, I did some checking around while I waited for you to get here." I had made it to Camphrier Town just a little over an hour ago. I had to be quick when I traversed through Route 5; As much as I wanted to meet up with Calem, I had to do some Training and fill in some pages to the Pokédex. I managed to train Vivian to a considerable level where she could hold her own in battle, as well as training Merida a little bit. They both learned new moves - Merida learned Psybeam and Vivian learned Dragonbreath. I also learned that Pokémon liked to attack in hordes here - I think I had to battle through 20 o 30 Pokémon as I made my way here. It was nothing Merida couldn't handle, but Vivian had a tougher time getting through them, so I had them battle side-by-side against the hordes so they could learn how to work as a team. I guess horde battles weren't so bad after all; Merida and Vivian work very well together, I learned. The Pokémon I recorded for the Route were Plusle, Minun, Skiddo, Pancham, Gulpin, Doduo, Abra and Furfrou - the rest were Pokémon I had already encountered. I also encountered a lot of Trainers out there, most of which were students who were attending the school in Lumiose. They weren't much of a challenge, not for Merida and now Vivian, anyway. We finally made it into town after all of that, though.

Camphrier Town was small, but full of history. It was a town that was mostly decorated with stones - stone pavement, stone buildings, and a small fountain in the plaza that was also made of stone. Even the Pokémon Center got the stone treatment, feeling more like a hotel than a place to heal and rest. It was peaceful when compare to Lumiose and even and Santalune City. It reminded me a lot of my hometown of Ecruteak, so I grew a liking to it pretty quickly. Unfortunately, I couldn't get to fully explore the place since I went straight to the Pokémon Center the moment I passed through the town's gate. Calem was sitting in the lobby when I arrived, but he was much more calm than he was when I talked to him via Holo Caster. I had explained everything that happened when I got to Route 5, and it turns out that he had a similar experience that I had at the Pokémon Center as well.

"Did you find anything?" I asked.

"Not entirely," he explained "but I started asking around town about Mega Evolution after remembering what Professor Sycamore asked us to do. I didn't get any answers about it, though I did see a place of some interest. Did you see a château near towards the north of town?" I nodded. "That's Shabboneau Castle. I haven't been in there yet, but I was told there's a lot of history in it. Maybe we'll find a lead there if we go check it out."

"Sounds good to me. By the way...what happened when we were on the Holo Casters? Why did you become so flustered?"

Calem paused again, stirring his lemonade with his straw. "Remember when I told you that I woke up with a headache and felt dizzy for a minute?"

I nodded. "Yeah?"

"Well, while I was talking to you, Genji spoke, and - just like you said - I could _hear_ him. I could hear his voice in my head speaking clear English, even though his own language was coming out of his mouth."

"Can you hear Spyro too or is it just Genji?"

"No, I can hear them both."

I looked over at Merida, who was sitting next to me on the couch watching Vivian, who was under the table. I told them both what was going on regarding being able to understand them while I was going through Route 5. Merida went quiet after that, not really saying much after the ordeal earlier. Vivian was always quiet, so I didn't expect to hear a peep out of her anyway, but I was wondering why Merida hasn't said anything...she's usually a bit talkative. "Have you told Genji that you can understand him?"

Calem nodded. "He didn't believe me at first until after I proved to him that I could. But, you gotta wonder if we can hear all Pokemon or just our own."

"...Huh. Never thought about that. But, wait, I could hear Korrina's Lucario, remember?"

"Oh yeah..." Silence between us again, and then the intercom suddenly came on a moment later.

_"Calling Calem Xenan to the front desk. Your Pokemon are ready!"_

"So THAT'S what your last name is," I remarked as Calem stood up.

"Yeah, yeah, I know it's weird," he said before grinning "But you're the one to talk Ms. _Yvetta_." I stuck my tongue out at him before he laughed, then headed towards the front desk. I strapped my bag back around my shoulder and prepared to leave when I felt Merida's paw on my hand. I looked over at her and saw that she was smiling. She didn't have to speak - actions speak more than words after all. I smiled back at her before standing from the couch, my hand gripping the strap to my bag. My party of 3 exited the Center and headed north towards the castle. The temperature had risen considerably in the last couple of hours. Now that the sun was higher, the heat had risen since then. I was so glad I decided to wear a tank top and shorts today.

_"We're going to Shabboneau Castle, right?"_ That was Merida's voice - she must have been paying attention to our conversation.

I nodded. "We might find a clue leading to Mega Evolution or this...ability that Calem and I have. If we can't find anything there, then we'll look elsewhere." The castle itself wasn't hard to find in the slightest. Camphrier was fairly small, and the castle itself was conspicuous, making it stick out like a sore thumb. Calem caught up to us once we made it to the drawbridge. The castle itself didn't looked too different from the rest of town - the only notable difference was that it looked older compared to the other buildings. Moss and vines covered the walls while there were several bricks and stones missing from the building itself. It was surrounded by a synthetic moat with a worn drawbridge leading to the only entrance.

"Huh. So, we're here," I said.

_"It certainly hasn't aged well..."_ Merida murmured.

"It just shows that there's a lot of history tied to it," Calem said. "I'm sure the person in charge of the place make sure it stays standing. It's the town's landmark, after all."

I paused before I turned towards him with a furrowed brow. "Wait, so you can-"

"Yeah." I shook my head before I headed into the castle with Merida, Calem and Genji following. No sense in questioning it anymore - not until we got answers.

_"...Um..."_

I looked back to see that Vivian was still sitting there, looking up at the castle with an unsure expression. "What's wrong, Vivian?"

_"A-are you...s-sure this place won't fall on us?"_ she squeaked. Poor girl...

"Would you feel better inside your Pokéball until we come out?" I asked. She nodded furiously, so I returned Vivian into her Ball as we entered the castle. The inside was in better shape than the outside, albeit a little. Of course, everything inside was made of stone and marble, but it was just empty, with the exception of the owner and a familiar girl in pink with a Pikachu on her shoulder.

"Li'l K! Calem!" Shauna squealed, before tackling us with hugs. "I'm so glad you two are here!"

"Hey Shauna," Calem laughed, trying to wriggle out of her arms.

"Acquaintances of yours? So that makes 3 visitors to Shabboneau Castle," the owner, who was a middle aged man - probably in his late thirties - with a kind face standing in front of an elegant glass case up against the wall. "I can't remember the last time we've been so busy! Welcome, all of you!" The three of us turned our attention to the man, who had a story to tell us about the castle. "This castle, or chateau to be more technical, was a manor house to a noble family. The original owner was a knight who served the king of Kalos back when the region first formed and rose into nobility after serving him for years. Then, shortly after the war, the owner gave away most of the items that were once here to the villagers and simply abandoned the place. He nor his family were seen since then. The castle may be a bit run down and worn out, but that's because there's history tied to it, after all. I'm in charge of its upkeep, though there isn't a lot to do in here...Anyhoo, that's the end of that story."

Shauna wasn't impressed. "What? That's it?! Don't you have anything related to Mega Evolution?"

"Actually, sir," I spoke up before he could reply to Shauna's outburst "my friend and I actually have something to ask." He nodded for me to go on. "There...wouldn't be anything in here about people being able to...let's say, talk or communicate with Pokémon?"

"Being able to understand what they're saying and speaking with them on another level of communication," Calem added. The owner contemplated our question while rubbing his chin - Shauna was giving us some questioning looks, but I gave her the "we'll explain later" look, so she didn't ask about it. We had to wait another moment before the owner finally spoke up again.

"Actually...now that I think about it, the knight who originally owned this place was rumored to be able to talk to Pokémon." I felt my heart race with excitement - we probably found what we've been looking for right here! "Though, I'm not entirely sure if it's true or not. After all, it's just a rumor. But I believe there's a book about there somewhere in-"

"Sir!" A boy around our age suddenly entered, panting and sweating from running, it looked like. "It...it's back again...on the bridge..."

"Goddammit...is it that time of year again already? Nothing I can really do about it, though..." The owner sighed before giving us an apologetic look. "Sorry kids, but there's an issue I have to look into on Route 7. But please, feel free to have a look around as much as you want. There's not a lot to see but..." He then looked at Calem and I. "The library is up on the second floor. If you wish, you can search through them to find the answers you're looking for." And with that, he left with the other teen, leaving the three of us standing there.

"So much for that, then," I murmured.

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it," Calem said "let's go to the second floor and look around."

"Uh, wait, guys," Shauna asked "why do you need to find out about talking to Pokémon? Why is it so important? Is it something Professor Sycamore told you to research?"

Calem and I looked at each other, mentally deciding that we might as well go ahead and tell Shauna about our ability. She was our friend after all, and she deserved to know. Besides, I'm not the one to keep secrets, and Calem didn't seem like that way either. It would be best to tell her now than wait until later where it gets out of control. Besides, she might be able to help us out. Who knows? "Actually, Shauna...there's something Calem and I have to tell you..." We took turns sharing our sides of our stories that led up to where we were able to hear our Pokémon's voices. Everything that led up to this point was told, but I had more to tell since I seem to had gotten the more eventful end of the stick. And at the end, we told her how we both had an "attack" on our brains this morning, and shortly after we recovered, we could hear the voices of our Pokemon. By the time we were finished telling our tale, we were already up on the second floor going through the very small library. We let the information sink into Shauna's mind as we searched through the books to see if there was anything that could be vital to finding out what it was Calem and I had. But we were coming up empty handed - the only thing that we were finding in the "library" were magazines, novels and old picture books for kids.

"Well, so much for our lead," I mumbled, tossing another book on the table.

"I don't think we will find anything here," Calem added. "We better go look elsewhere."

"Waitwaitwait! I want to do a quick experiment!" Shauna exclaimed while waving her arms.

I frowned a bit. "What kind of experiment?"

Shauna then pointed at Electra, who had never left her shoulder and grinned. "I wanna see if this is real! So here - talk to Electra and tell me what she says!"

"Chuu?" Electra tilted her head before looking at Calem and I. "Pika-pi, pikachu."

My frown got deeper, if that was possible. "I...I can't hear her."

"I did," Calem said "She said she doesn't regret meeting you or Kat."

I could have sworn I saw stars appear in Shauna's eyes, though I couldn't blame her for it. "Really? Did you really say that, Electra?"

The yellow mouse nodded. "Pika!"

"Okay, weird," I said "I can't hear her for some reason, even though Calem can. I can hear the others just fine though..."

"Maybe it's random?" Calem suggested "Because I couldn't hear Vivian when we were outside, but I heard Merida just fine."

"Well, whatever the reason is, I don't think we will it find here," Shauna said, looking at the mess of literature all over the floor and table. "I think we should just look for another source. Hey! Why don't you ask the Professor? He might know something about it!"

Calem nodded. "It's worth a shot." He took off his Holo Caster from its clip on his bag and headed towards the stairs with Genji and Spyro at his heels. "I'll contact him right now to see if he knows anything. Meet me downstairs when you can."

"We will," I said, before looking at the mess we had to clean up "Right after we clean this mess up..." Calem went back down to the second floor while Shauna and I - as well as our Pokémon - cleaned up the books and put them back to their respective places. It wasn't a big mess to clean up - we discarded the books that were useless into neat stacks to piled them up on the table. The real problem came in when we tried to remember which book went where and which shelf it came from. In the end we simply stuffed most of the books into the shelves and what didn't fit we stacked it on the table. It wasn't an effective way to put everything away, but hey - it worked. We double-checked to make sure there wasn't anything out of place or being left behind before we headed towards the stairs to meet up with Calem.

_"Kat, look at this."_ I paused after hearing Merida's voice, and turned to see her holding a very old and worn book that was heavily damaged from the elements and just old age. The cover was made out of brown leather, but it was full of holes and scratches that the title was beyond legible, if there was even a title on it in the first place. I opened the book, and wrinkled my nose at the musty old smell that emanated from it, only to see that more than half of the pages were ripped out, and the pages that were left had faded words that couldn't be read, or text that was become black streaks due to water damage. I was about to ask Merida why she would show this to me when I couldn't do a thing with it, until I found a page towards the end that was still legible.

_"...and disappeared without a trace. Those who have known about them have search and searched tirelessly to find any traces of where the tribespeople could have went after the war. Even their Pokémon had followed in their companions' footsteps and seemingly disappeared from the earth, and there have been rumors that they had no reason to stay after their designated deities fell into deep slumber. I have heard some of the villagers whisper that the tribespeople were only legends and myths, but I have found traces of the king's famed knights in the ruins of his adobe. I will continue my search, however. They are the only lead I have to uncovering the truth about their...why th...conn...where...My wif...son...Priestess Kya...and nothi...bringing them back...need...order..."_

The rest was beyond legible. The words were either a jumbled mess or cut off due to the many pieces missing from the page. It looked like an entry to a diary or journal by how it was worded, or someone's notes. I checked the other pages to make sure I didn't miss anything, but they were lost causes as well. I decided to keep it just in case it could be useful later on. I thanked Merida for the find and we proceeded to the first floor. Calem and Shauna were waiting at the entrance for us, so we exited the castle together. As we left town towards the next Route, Calem began to explain that the Professor didn't have anything regarding our ability, but would look into it before contacting us again.

"Hopefully we'll hear something from him soon," he finished as we began to walk through Route 7. "I think we should just carry on with our journey until there. There's very little we can do about it now."

"I'm wondering what happened to make the owner of the castle leave in such a hurry," Shauna mused out loud "Do you think something happened?"

I shrugged, noticing another path going up towards the northeast . "It must be important, whatever it is." There was a bridge that led to the rest of the Route up ahead, but the castle owner and the teen were there, and I soon saw why he had to leave in a hurry. "Looks like we're about to find out just what's going on..." The owner and teen heard us coming and turned their attention to us. In front of them was a Snorlax, lying there on the bridge snoozing away like a lump. I have heard many tales about Snorlax blocking paths all over the world, though the problems seemed to be more common in Kanto. I already knew about Snorlax thanks to school, but I filled its page in the Pokédex anyway; I saw Calem and Shauna do the same out of the corner of my eye, though Shauna seemed to be more interested in it.

"Ah, I see you decided to come have a look for yourself," the owner nodded, before he looked back at the Snorlax with disapproving eyes.

"Is this a normal occurrence?" Calem asked out of genuine curiosity.

The owner nodded. "'Fraid so. This Snorlax always comes down from the mountains when summer is at is peak - around June and July mostly - and just naps on the bridge for Arceus knows how long. It's a problem for us and Trainers, as you can clearly see, so I've made it my job to move this mountain of laziness whenever he decides to visit. But..." he sighed "I can't really do anything about it at the moment."

"You need a Pokéflute to wake Snorlax up, right?" I asked "I heard those are the only thing that can wake them up."

The man nodded. "I had a Pokéflute of my own but...I gave it away a while ago..."

"Actually, it was taken," the teen explained "The owner of the Parfum Palace has it. And there's not telling what that pompous jackass is doing with it right now."

"Knowing him, he would just have it on display." the man snorted.

Tiptup and Spyro were jumping around on Snorlax's stomach as if it were a trampoline while Merida and Chester tried to get them off the Pokemon's stomach. Genji was more content watching a leaf float on Snorlax's nose every time it breathes in and out.

"Parfum Palace is just beyond Palais Lane, right?" Calem said "If the owner has it then we can go get it back for you."

"I don't want to put you kids through any trouble..."

"We have to get past here anyway," I added "Besides, I wanted to see the Palace for myself. It may be an errand, but it would be a good li'l detour for us. We're on a journey around Kalos you see, so doing this favor for you may actually be a good thing for us."

"And we just can't sit here and do nothing while Snorlax causes trouble for everyone!" Shauna exclaimed "Just leave it to us! You'll have that flute back in your hands before you know it!"

Both males looked at each of us before the owner nodded and smiled. "You don't know how much I appreciate this. However, the owner of the Palace is a bit...well, you'll see when you get there. Don't say I didn't warn you. But if you explain the situation to him, I'm fairly certain he will lend you the Pokéflute. Just ignore his behavior the best way you can, for your sake if anything else."

I nodded. "Understood."

We called out Pokémon to our side before the three of us backtracked until we reached the branching path that was Palais Lane (also known as Route 6). We couldn't begin to explore the area before Shauna suddenly shouted that she had to go to the bathroom and ran off back to Camphirer Town with Chester, Electra and Tiptup at her heels before Calem and I could get a word in. We had no choice but to stand there and wait for her to come back, much to our annoyance. This was going to be a loooong day...

* * *

**E/N:** I really wanted to make this longer, but after the shenanigans I had to go through last night, I'm really tired and wanted to get this done and posted, so I apologize about the weak ending. I feel bad about the dialogue between Ryu and Merida - I feel like I could have improved it, but my brain wasn't working well when I wrote that part...it still isn't...

So, before anyone starts to nag at me, I gave Calem and Kat the ability to speak with Pokémon because it's A. important to the plot and B. enables them to bond more with their Pokémon, thus helping them unlock Mega Evolution further into the story. I'm not trying to give them any uber powers - you clearly saw that they're having trouble hearing other voices of their Pokémon besides their own, so I'm trying to even it out. I don't want to hear anything about that I'm copying N's ability from Black and White, because I'm not. As a matter of fact, there are other people in the Pokémon world who can communicate with Pokémon, not just N. There were even a few in the anime and previous games, but no one mentions them. I love N, but he wasn't the only one who could talk to Pokémon. He just gets more attention because of his role in B/W and B2/W2.

Palais Lane/Route 6 and the Parfum Palace will be covered in the next chapter. After that comes my second favorite chapter - Amberette Town and the Glittering Cave. I seriously can't wait to write it..;w;

[Edit] Fixed a couple of mistakes.


	7. Quest in the Palace

**A/N:** So glad to get this chapter done...

* * *

Palais Lane was very picturesque - trees lined each side of the route with perfectly round bushes under them. The evening was starting to set in turning the sky into its usual bright orange color. But since the sky was blocked by the canopies of the trees, only a couple of the sun's fading rays could penetrate, giving the route a mystifying feel and look. The palace could be seen up ahead, but we still had some ways to go before we got there. Shauna was still having her potty break, and Calem and I were growing a little impatient. We decided to explore the tall grass beyond the trees to pass the time; There were plenty of Pokémon in there, so I used this as an opportunity to fill in more pages to the Pokédex. There were also other Trainers - mostly tourists loitering around the area, so Calem and I used them to train our Pokémon with. We came out victorious at then end of every battle, so we were growing stronger by the day it seemed. But out victories were short lived - the tall grass in this area literally went above out heads, so Calem and I kept getting lost on more than one occasion. Luckily for us, our Pokémon were great at tracking the other down - Merida's big and roomy ears had given her acute hearing, and Genji's amazing observance skills and speed helped a lot as well.

We eventually stopped fooling around in the grass and met back up on the main road. Somehow, Calem and I ended up on opposite sides - don't ask how that happened because I don't know myself. When we did meet up again however, Calem had another Pokémon accompanying him - it was a bipedal purple cat called an Espurr. It was cute, but it had just weird habit of staring at any and everything without blinking for minutes. It made our other Pokémon uncomfortable, but it didn't seem to care.

"Where'd you find this li'l one?" I asked him, filling its page in the Pokédex.

"I honestly don't know," Calem replied, looking at the feline "It just started following me shortly after we entered the grass. I haven't made any attempt to capture it."

"Well, it's a Psychic type," I noted "maybe it sensed something in you it liked?"

"Maybe..." Espurr kept staring at Calem, though it did turned to look at me a few times. It was hard to see what this little Pokémon was thinking about, and why it had such in interest in Calem. I honestly believed it had something to do with it being a Psychic types, since they can see and sense things that most Pokémon cannot.

_"...Take me with you."_

My eyes widened before I turned towards Calem. "Did you-"

He nodded and remained silent, keeping his focus on Espurr. From its voice, we found out it was a female. _"Take me with you. I can feel something strong within you, stranger. I am curious as to why this is...you are, what they call, a 'Trainer,' yes?" _Calem nodded again. _"Very well. Capture me if you wish - my only desire is to prove myself to you as we travel."_ Calem went silent for a minute before he took out a Pokéball and held it out towards Espurr. Said Pokémon immediately tapped the button and allowed itself to be captured, putting up little to no resistance as the Ball released its all too familiar "click!" indicating that Espurr was caught. Calem then released Espurr from her new Pokéball and went through the process of introducing himself, his partners, and then me and my party. She was also given the name Athena by her new Trainer, and seemed to adjust to her new name fairly quickly. She looked indifferent to everything thanks to her always neutral expression, but she was pretty interested in us and how we were able to understand her. Shauna happened to FINALLY arrive after the capture, and she quickly took notice to the new team member. We went straight to the palace while we did introductions, and soon, we were face-to-face with Parfum Palace.

The Palace itself was a HUGE upgrade from Shabboneau Castle - It was only two stories high, but what it lacks in height, it made up for in volume. Rooms upon rooms with crystal windows were lined up one after another on each floor, a stone fence accompanied with a beautiful golden gate surrounded the palace with a very short designed concrete road with fancy street lamps in front of it. And I noticed that it had the same structure and style as the Shabboneau Castle and most of Camphrier Town, but it was fancier and modernized than the castle. We approached the palace filled with awe, even our Pokémon could help but to stare and admire the palace's beauty. There were many tourists outside and around the palace either taking pictures of it or taking pictures of themselves and other people standing in front o it. Shauna insisted that we all took a picture together in front of the Palace for a scrapbook she intends to make, so we did it just for the sake of preserving the memory. There was a professional photographer on the palace grounds taking numerous of pictures for the other tourists, so we had him do it for us (none of us had a camera anyway). He took a great picture, so we all paid him a tip as a thank you before going to the palace itself. We approached the gate, only to be stopped by a nicely dressed guard (more like a butler, but it was hard to tell).

"Excuse us," Calem asked "but is this place open to the public?"

"It is," the butler nodded "but the entry fee is 1,000 Poké per person."

All of our jaws dropped. "Are you kidding me?!" Shauna exclaimed "We have to pay just to get into this place?!"

"Why the high admission fee?" I asked, trying my best to mask my displeasure.

"I do apologize about this, but he owner of the palace follows the school of thought that you can never have too much money. Ergo he charges an even amount of 1,000 for each person who wishes to enter."

Calem wrinkled up his nose. "Sheesh...that's just a way for the rich to get richer. We 'commoners' - as you call us - work hard for the money we earn only to have it spent on things that shouldn't even have a price tag on it."

"Ugh, there's nothing we can do about it. We need the Pokéflute after all..." I brought up my bank account via Holo Caster and took out the desired amount. "Here it is, then. Exactly 1,000 Poké." Calem and Shauna paid their entry fee as well, though they did it with much disdain. The guard then went on the explain that the entrance fee goes towards paying off the expenses needed to repair and restore the palace. But we all knew that was a lie, even he did; with how fancy and grand this place was, I highly doubt that it doesn't need any more repairs or to be restored to whatever state it should be in. Honestly, the owner was just making quick and easy money from us. But, we had a task to do, so we entered the palace through its grand ivory and gold double doors.

"Talk about a ripoff," Shauna mumbled "I bet he charges people just to look at touch the stuff in here!"

"It wouldn't surprise me," I said "I bet there's a fee for looking at whatever's supposed to be in here. I won't be coming back here anytime soon..."

We were already inside before we took notice of our new surroundings - we were too busy voicing our complaints about the fee to even notice the beauty on the inside. All I had to say was this: gold was EVERYWHERE; As soon as you walk in, you're greeted by a golden Milotic statue with golden busts of Bisharp on each side of the entrance hall. There was no carpeting here - only a wooden floor with a complicated design. The walls were painted a reddish-maroon color with gold floral patterns. Arches that led to the other halls and rooms were ivory just like the doors leading in with - of course - more gold design. Whoever owned the place must really have a thing for gold...Speaking of the owner, he was right in front of us frantically pacing around the Milotic statue looking very distraught.

"Where are you? Fluffle-Frou?! Where are you my darling angel? FLUFFLE-FROU!"

Calem, Shauna and I looked at each other and winced - I wasn't entirely sure if it was from the terrible nickname or the fact that this guy's voice was loud and exceedingly annoying. I could only guess that it was both reasons, and I was beginning to understand why the owner of the castle back in Camphrier Town warned us beforehand about the palace's owner. Something told me that retrieving the Pokéflute was not going to be an easy task as we initially thought. The owner then noticed us just standing there awkwardly before he approached with pleading eyes.

"Are you three visitors? Can you help me, please?" he begged "My darling Fluffle-Frou - I mean my Furfrou - has disappeared and I can't find him anywhere! I don't know where he could have wandered off to and I'm worried that I will never see my baby again! Something might have happened to him!"

This man was pitiful indeed. "Uh, c-calm down sir. I'm sure he hasn't left the palace grounds..."

"Where did you last see him?" Calem asked.

"Uh...well...we were making our rounds through the palace and I turned my back for just a teensy second and when I turned around he was gone! I've looked everywhere - I even have my employees look for him but they have come up empty handed so far! I don't know what I will do if I don't find him! Life isn't worth living without my sweet Fluffle-Frou!" The poor man was on the verge of tears, but I honestly couldn't feel sorry for him.

"We'll help look for him!" Shauna offered "I'm sure that the three of us will find him quicker if we split up! I mean...if my Pokémon got lost I would be worried sick! Let's check every place he could be, and if we can't find anything, we meet up here!"

"Sounds like a plan," Calem nodded "We'll contact each other through our Holo Casters. If anyone finds anything, then call right away."

I nodded. "Got it." I looked at Merida and Vivian, who seemed more than happy to help out. "Well gang, let's get started. Something tells me we have a LOT of ground to cover." Our plan was made, and we went our separate ways to start our search around the palace. I just hope that this wouldn't turn out to be a difficult search mission.

. . .

I'm going to end up eating my shoes if this keeps up. Here I am hoping that finding a Furfrou wouldn't be too hard...but given the sheer size of the palace had proven this to be much harder than we initially thought. We had to search through EVERY. ROOM. And there's at least 20, 30, probably 50 rooms in this entire palace by itself! I got lost on many occasions, and I ran into Calem and Shauna a couple of times too. I was starting to get frustrated since I knew we have been going through this place like a fine toothed comb to make sure we didn't happen to miss the Furfrou, and I know we've been in here searching for a good hour if not more. There were even more tourists inside the palace as well, but they turned out to be more of a nuisance rather than being helpful; None of them saw the Furfrou - or they claim they haven't - and most of them were too busy ooh''ing and ahh'ing to even try to help. I was starting to wonder if we would even find it.

_"This is getting ridiculous,"_ I heard Merida say as we exited yet ANOTHER room _"I'm starting to believe that he's not even here."_

"He has to be," I insisted, looking at the various gold statues of knights lining the wall "Though I will admit I'm getting my money's worth for this place. For 1,000 Poké, this is one heck of an adventure. We even learned a thing or two from the people who work here."

Merida put her paw on her hip as we walked. _"The only thing I learned was that the idiot downstairs only inherited this place. He literally did nothing to work for this place, only being a 'descendant' of the original owner, who was supposedly the king back then."_

"And that the palace was built shortly after the king won several wars against other regions," I added "I actually want to check out the library after we get finished with this. The one here might be more useful than the one in Shabboneau Castle. The only thing we found there was this journal of sorts, and we could only find one page that could be read." We went down another hall that led to the balcony - it was lined with mirrors while the entry arches were ivory in color with more gold trimmings. I walked out to see that the garden was overlooking the palace's garden; The garden covered as much ground as the palace, and had four hedgerow gardens in the shapes of various Pokémon. Several statues of Pokéballs were places around the hedgerow gardens while statues of Reshiram and Zekrom (thanks again, Pokédex) stood proudly in the front and the back. The once bright orange sky was now turning a very dark blue now that the sun was almost gone with only its lasting deep orange light visible from the horizon. Time really did fly by as we were searching for this elusive Furfrou - it was getting late. "But from the looks of it, I won't be able to have my study time..."

Vivian crawled closer to the edge of the balcony, sticking her head through the small columns to see the garden more clearly. She suddenly gasped, and tapped my leg with her antennae. _"Um, Kat? I think I found him..."_

I followed Vivian's gaze and saw an all too familiar white poodle creature loitering around in the garden below. I suddenly gained a surge of energy as I returned Vivian to her Ball and ran back into the hall. I grabbed my Holo Caster and dialed Calem's and Shauna's number after stopping near the stairwell - I didn't want to fall while running _and_ trying to call them at the same time.

"I found him," I gasped once Calem's and Shauna's holographic images appeared "He's in the garden. I'm heading there now."

"I'm in the lobby on the first floor," Shauna said "To get into the garden, you need to go through the two blue doors that are directly in front of the entrance hall. I keep seeing a lot of people go out there."

"I'm all the way on the east side past the balcony," Calem explained "Can you guys meet me out there? It's going to take me a while to get down there from here..."

"Sure. I'll see you guys then." I hung up before running down the stairs and towards the lobby. When I got there, more people were going out past the two blue doors out to the garden just as Shauna said. I wasted no time and ran out there, and soon slowed down as I walked over the bridge over a small lake with statues of a knight that was probably the king, accompanied with a Golurk, Palitoad and Eevee sitting in the lake. Streams of water cascaded gracefully into the lake below from the Dratini statues sitting on the balcony, overlooking the garden. I had to admit, it was stunning. I didn't see the Furfrou in the area I first spotted it in once I was outside. I soon found out why after spotting Shauna and Electra chasing the poor thing near the back of the garden. I could do nothing but stand there and watch as the girl in pink and her Pikachu chase down a runaway Furfrou, which proved to be faster than her and Electra combined. She even called out its name to get it to stop, but I could have sworn it ran faster and I don't blame it - that name is just horrible. Either way, I found the scene to be pretty amusing. However, Merida tapped my arm to help me refocus on the task at hand, so we ran towards Shauna in front of a fountain in the middle of the garden, now sitting on the ground panting and sweating a little with Electra lying on her stomach doing the same.

"It's...pretty fast," she panted "I think...we're...better off...cornering it...in the hedgerow...gardens..."

_"If that's what you plan to do, you're in luck,"_ Merida said, before pointing towards the hedgerow garden on the top left. The Furfrou was also lying on the ground panting. _"If we're quick, we can corner it there before it decides to take off again."_

Shauna furrowed her brow, wondering what Merida was saying to me. "What did she say?"

"Merida says that it's in one of the hedgerow gardens," I explained "We will be able to corner it if we get over there fast enough."

"Oh." Shauna then stood up, now fully rested while Electra climbed up to her shoulder. "Well I'll help too! After all, I love puzzles! If we work together, I'm sure we will catch Fluffle-Frou!"

I could have sworn I heard a growl from the hedgerow garden. "Please...never say that again..."

"Yeah, you're right. That name is just awful." We made our way towards the garden where Furfrou was while sharing a laugh at the humiliating nickname. We made it there in a matter of seconds, but the Furfrou took off deeper into the garden once we got closer. "Hmm...hey Li'l K, how about I stand here in the middle and you approach it from the opposite side. That way, it will have no choice but to go up!"

I followed Shauna's suggestion and went to the other side of where Furfrou was standing. Shauna gave me the okay to continue before I drew closer to it, and it immediately took off towards the other end of the garden, seeing that the other way was blocked. Now it was in front of a dead end that we were trying to corner it into - I told Shauna to stand on one end while I went to the other, and we both approached the Furfrou. It ran again, but this time it ran towards the dead end since it had no where else to go. We finally caught it, much to our relief, but I couldn't help but to feel sorry for it a little. It meant that now it had to go back to it's owner.

"Sorry bud, but we kinda need you to go back with your owner," I said to him. Oddly, enough, he was docile enough to let me pet him, though he whined at us.

"I kinda feel sorry for it," Shauna murmured "I would hate to have that guy as my owner if I were a Pokémon."

"Regardless, we need the Pokéflute...If he wants, this li'l guy can run off as soon as we leave. In fact, I kinda encourage it."

Furfrou looked at Shauna and I before it started barking. "Ouaf, fuahf-woorf! Aworooo! Bahrk, ouaf fuarf!"

I frowned, not being able to hear its voice. "What did he say?" I asked Merida.

_"He says that he originally belonged to Shaun - the owner of Shabboneau Castle - as a pup. But he's been paying back loans to Azllo - the palace owner - ever since they became adults. When Shaun couldn't pay the loan with money, he took him instead, and then the Pokéflute a couple of months ago. He wants to go back to his original owner and hear him play the flute again."_ Furfrou barked a few more times. _"He's tried to take the flute and escape home, but it's locked away in a display case. He could've ran away at any time, but he's really been staying here waiting for when he was able to get the flute. Only then he would return home."_

I frowned deeply. "That's awful."

Shauna tilted her head. "What's awful?" I explained to her what Merida just told me, and Shauna suddenly looked horrified. "That's just despicable! How could he do such a thing to the castle owner and his Furfrou?! You can't just take something that doesn't belong to you, even if it was to repay a loan! No wonder he's just sitting on his keister being handed free money! If I had any respect for that guy left, it's all gone!"

"That makes two of us," I spat, before kneeling down in front of Furfrou and petting him again. "Listen pal, my friends and I need to get the Pokéflute back to your original owner anyway. So...this may be your only chance to leave this place and go home. But we will find a way to help you get back to your real owner, even if it means reasoning with Azllo or sneaking you out of here ourselves, and that's a promise." I couldn't hear it, but I could tell Furfrou knew we were here to help. Unfortunately, it didn't get a chance to reply when it owner decided to come out here and reclaim "his" Furfrou.

"Fluffle-Frou! My dear beloved Fluffle-Frou! You're safe and sound! I'm so relieved!" he exclaimed as he rushed over and petted its head. Shauna and I slightly glared at him, but said nothing. He then turned to look at us. "You two must be responsible for my wonderfrou reunion with my darling Furfrou?" Ugh...he ever puts "frou" at the end of some of his words..."How wonderfrou indeed! Marvelous! I applaud you both!" He clasped his hands together and smiled with excitement. "This DEMANDS a fireworks show! It will show everyone the bond between Fluffle-Frou and I!...And also serve as a reward for your hard work, of course. The rendezvous spot will be on the balcony. You know how to get there, yes? Just on the second floor in the hall full of mirrors. You honestly can't miss it even if you tried. You understand? Good. Now then, you two go do that while I get everything ready. Come Fluffle-Frou - we have to get ready!" Furfrou lowered his head and begrudgingly followed Azllo back towards the palace, but not before looking back at us with pleading eyes that cried for help before leaving the garden.

"...You know what I think?" Shauna said softly "I believe Furfrou would've been better off if we hadn't found it, y'know?..."

"You're telling me," I said "But it couldn't be helped...we have to move Snorlax off the bridge to get to the next town. We need to Pokéflute to wake up Snorlax to move it if we want to proceed. Trust me, I don't like it anymore than you do, but this is something we had to do. Besides, I...I sorta promised him that we would help him get back to his real owner. I'm sure we'll find a way before we go back to Route 7."

"I hope you're right...but you know what? It's really cool how you can understand a Pokémon's feelings and channel it so that they can understand yours. I could tell that Fufrou trusts you and wants you to help it. And I want to help him too! I want to learn how to understand Pokemon the way you do, Li'l K! Well...I guess there's nothing else we can do then, right? Let's go up to the balcony and see the fireworks."

"Yeah. Might as well..." We navigated out way out of the hedgerow and back towards the bridge, but not before Shauna suddenly clenched her legs together and started hopping around. I raised my eyebrow at her before asking "The heck's wrong with you?"

"I need to pee..." she murmured, looking awfully embarrassed.

"You just...didn't you already go to the bathroom before we came here?" I exasperated.

"Do you know how long ago that was? The sun was still out then - it's dark now!" She said nothing else before she ran back into the palace to look for the nearest toilet. I only shook my head and went back inside, whilst hearing Merida laugh beside me.

. . .

After staring at the patterns of the hedgerow gardens, I noticed that all four of them were in the shapes of Pokémon. Bastiodon, Chandelure, Solrock and I believe Kyurem were the four shapes of the gardens. I only took notice of this because I had nothing better to do than stare out at the garden while waiting for Shauna, who has not made it back from the bathroom yet. It was completely dark out now - the stars were visible and the quarter full moon hung in the sky above us. It was a perfect night to see a fireworks show, if it would start anyway; I really hope Shauna would hurry and get here on time before the show began, but if I knew her well enough by now, I would guess that she got lost trying to get up here. And judging by how long I've been waiting for her, I would assume that I was right. At least my Pokémon were with me; Merida was by my side as always, and Vivian was curious about what was going on. I was starting to become impatient - I just wanted to get the flute and leave this place already.

"Hey neighbor." I turned to see Calem step onto the balcony with Genji and Athena at his side. "I take it you and Shauna found Furfrou?"

I nodded. "Azllo - that's the name of the palace owner by the way - is supposed to be putting on a fireworks show in celebrate his reunion with it. And it's supposed to be a reward for us finding it, but I kinda doubt it."

"I see. Sorry about not making it in time. We...sorta got lost..."

_"I tried to get them to ask for directions,"_ I heard Athena say while shrugging _"but they were too stubborn."_

Merida scoffed. _"Men."_

Genji shot Athena a quick glare while I stifled a giggle. Calem decided to just ignore them and changed the subject quickly. "Hey, where is Shauna anyway? I thought you two met up in the garden?"

"We did," I nodded "but Shauna had to go take another potty break. I've been standing here waiting for her since then."

"...She got lost, didn't she?"

"Yeeeah, pretty much." It was Calem's turn to laugh as he leaned against the rail and looked out into the garden. I decided to explain to him what happened when we found Furfrou in the garden, including the new information about the situation between the Azllo and Shaun, and Furfrou's predicament. I told him that I volunteered to help it, and Calem was more than willing to do the same - he even brought up the fact that our ability to communicate with Pokémon could help reason with palace owner, but given his behavior, I sort of doubt it. I was about to elaborate more on that before a loud whistling noise cut me off. A loud bang followed by flashing lights indicated that the fireworks show was starting. Our attention immediately went towards the show, giving us a wonderous display of exploding colors, shapes and sizes. Our Pokémon were even enchanted by the display - mostly Athena and Vivian since they never saw anything like this before. The tourists and even some of the employees in the garden also stopped to look at the fireworks, appearing to be just as enchanted as we were. For the trouble we had to go through since we've arrived, this was worth it.

"...Hey Kat?"

"Yeah?"

"I remembered what I wanted to tell you at the café."

"Oh really?" I turned towards him "What was it?"

"I was going to tell you that I wanted you and I to become rivals in a competition to see who was the strongest, but I changed my mind." He turned towards me. "You see, ever since we started our journey, my only cause was to travel around the region, grow stronger, collect the Gym Badges, compete in the League and be done with it. I didn't care about anything else - I just wanted to show my family - show the world that I can gain my own strength and prove to them that I'm not just some other Trainer, you know? And...to be honest, the only reason why I wanted us to become rivals was because I felt threatened by you. When I saw the way you just easily defeated Shauna and that kid Austin the day we met, I became scared. I thought you would become that brick wall I would have to find a way to pass through if I wanted to accomplish my goal, so I decided then that I needed to get you out of the way if I was to be successful. But when I actually sat down and got to know you a bit more yesterday in Lumiose City, I was able to open my eyes and see the real you, not the person I made you out to be. You may be the daughter of the famous Rhyhorn Rider Grace, but you don't let that define who you are. Really, you're just an ordinary kid like me who just want to enjoy a journey around the region with her friends and Pokémon. You could care less about being strong or weak, but you seem to have this fighting spirit that allows you to bring out this incredible prowess in both yourself and your Pokémon. But you're also selfless and will put others before yourself, including Pokémon that don't even belong to you. So, what I'm trying to say is...I no longer want to be your rival; Instead, I want us to become close friends. I want to travel alongside you and share memories with you as we travel through Kalos. I...I forgot what it was to actually have fun, but you managed to open my eyes and see things from a different perspective. And I thank you for that, but I also want to apologize for putting a target on your back."

I was speechless. "I...um...wow...thanks Calem, but I-"

"And THAT, ladies and gentlemen, was my wonderfrou fireworks display in tribute to my dear Fluffle-Frou!" I cringed after hearing that Arceus-awful name again before I noticed Azllo, one of his butlers and Furfrou step onto the balcony. "Ahh, there's nothing I love more than fireworks! They're simply amazing and marvelous! The way they explode into a shower of colors and patterns - it's enough to move anyone's heart!" He turned his attention to us after he was done gloating. "I trust you two were satisfied with that. I went through a looot of trouble trying to make the most wonderfrou combination for the show."

"Trust me, we're more than satisfied," I said. I noticed Furfrou giving me an expectant look, causing me to remember the very reason why we were here. "OH! That's right! Excuse me, Mr. Azllo? You wouldn't happen to have the Pokéflute from Shabboneau Castle, would you?"

Azllo's face went from happy to what looked like disappointment. "The Pokéflute, huh..." he sighed "I'm going to assume Shaun sent you, didn't he?" I nodded. "Fine. Arthur, go get it, would you?" The butler bowed shortly before leaving to get the flute. "The flute was the treasure of the family who once lived in Shabboneau Castle before it was abandoned. I took it as a payment for a loan a little while ago."

"Just like Furfrou, huh?"

Azllo suddenly frowned as he eyed me with suspicsion. "Who told you that?! As a matter of fact, how do you even know my name? I bet Shaun told you, didn't he? He's always been jealous of the fact that I was rich and he-"

"Furfrou told me."

"...I beg your pardon?"

"Well...look, my friend and I have this...ability where we can hear the voices of various Pokémon. When we found Furfrou outside, it told us how you took it from Shaun as a pup as a previous payment for a loan just like you did the flute. He's been wanting to go home ever since he's been with you, but it's been staying because it wants to get the flute back to Shaun - he wants to hear him play again."

Azllo simply scoffed at us. "And you expect me to believe that two commoner kids can speak to Pokémon? You HAVE to be joking...Besides, Shaun already sent you for the flute, did he not?"

"If you don't believe us, then explain why Furfrou constantly runs away from you," Calem challenged "It's clear to us that he doesn't like you and wants his original owner back. Besides, you HAVE the money to get a Furfrou of your own - why take someone else's?"

"Fluffle-Frou was only a puppy when I took him in," Azllo retorted "and who's to say I took him as a payment? You have no proof!"

"We have Furfrou's word," I said firmly "Pokémon aren't items we can simply give or take - they're living creatures with as many feelings as we have. The only thing that hinders them is the fact that they can't communicate with us openly as you or me can, but their behavior and body language should be more than enough to show us what they're trying to say. If you really DID care for Furfrou, then you would ask him yourself. He has that right to a decision just like anyone else, and a free will that shouldn't be taken away."

Arthur the butler had came back with the Pokéflute in his hands and handed it to Calem. "Actually, sir, if I may...I couldn't help but to overhear the conversation," he said "I believe these children MAY have the ability to communicate with Pokémon. I have read many books and heard tales of an ancient race of people born with this gift."

"Wait, so you actually have something about it?" Calem asked.

Arthur nodded. "Why yes. Though, the information that I have is very little and may not be of use..."

"We'll take it," I said quickly "We want to learn as much about this as we can."

"Very well...Now then, from what I have read and was told, this race had a very close connection to the 3 Legendary Pokémon of Kalos - Xerneas, Yveltal, and Zygarde. It was even believed that these people were in fact born from them, but that has yet to be proven. The people were split into 3 groups for each Legendary, and carried out specific duties and tasks that represented each one. They were as different as day and night, but they all had the ability to hear the voices of Pokémon, enabling them to speak with them in the same way you and I are speaking right now. It is also rumored that they had a strong connection with the Earth and was admired by the king of Kalos when he stilled reigned at that time. However, they suddenly disappeared more than 3,000 years ago shortly after the great war that plagued the land, and nothing regarding their existence can be found anywhere, except in underground sources, but even those are kept secret. Alas, that is all I can share with you at the moment..."

"Still more than what we were able to find," Calem noted "Oh, by the way Mr...Arthur?, right Do you have any information regarding Mega Evolution?"

"Mega Evolution? Hmm...I remember reading a book about the very subject in the palace's library. It said something about having a Trainer hold a mysterious high to further evolve a Pokémon. Actually, now that you mention it, the ancient race of people were also said to be the very first ones to use Mega Evolution." Calem and I looked at each other. "There may be more information floating around here, but I have yet to find it. In fact, I've become rather interested in both subjects. I may even do a little research when I have the free time."

"If you happen to find anything else regarding either or," I asked "do you mind contacting Professor Sycamore to tell him the details? We're his students, see, and he's trying to discover secrets about both subjects."

"I would be honored to do so," Arthur said bowing "I'll contact him as soon as I find anything."

Azllo suddenly cleared his throat loudly, ending the conversation. He looked both impatient and annoyed, and I got a feeling that he would love nothing more than to kick Calem and I out of the palace. "Well then, if you lot are finished, Fluffle-Frou and I will be on our way. But listen well you two - always return what you borrow. Technically the flute still belongs to me." He turned to leave, but Furfrou didn't follow. I didn't noticed this until I felt his fur brush across my hand. Azllo tried to get the canine to follow after seeing he was no longer by his side, but it wouldn't budge. It even growled at him after being called by Fluffle-Frou a few times. He finally accepted defeated, and begrudgingly insisted that we bring the flute back once we were done with it before leaving in a huff. Calem remarked that he hoped he never had to see him again, but I couldn't help but to notice the smile on Furfrou's face as he looked up at me with his tail wagging a bit.

_"Thank you."_

. . .

Arthur was nice enough to escort us back to the entrance - we even met up with Shauna, who did in fact got herself lost while trying to get back to the balcony, but she was able to see the fireworks from the garden with the rest of the tourists. She was relieved when she saw us with the flute, but asked us why Furfrou was with us. Calem and I began to retell what happened up on the balcony after the fireworks show as we made our way back to Route 7. Shauna was glad that we were able to get Furfrou out of Azllo's possession after the explanation was over, and seemed really interested in the ancient race of people that Arthur told us about. As much as I wanted to elaborate on that, I was honestly exhausted from wandering around in the palace and trying to catch Furfrou. I told Calem and Shauna to go on ahead and give the flute and Furfrou back to Shaun while I went back to Camphrier Town. Shauna promised that they would, so we split ways once we reached the crossroads at the end of Palais Lane. It was a little bit after 10 when I did make it back to the Pokémon Center - I had Merida and Vivian checked on once again while I went to go buy a quick and easy meal. I settled on buying a small bowl of ramen and some tea and ate in the lobby while I waited. By the time I had finished eating, Calem and Shauna had returned from Route 7; they told me that Shaun was ecstatic when they arrived with Furfrou, and said that he couldn't care less about the flute after getting his Pokémon back. And from what I was told, Furfrou was just as happy to be back with him (turns out that Furfrou's actual name was Prince - MUCH better than Fluffle-Frou). I was happy for both of them regardless, and I was glad that I was able to keep my promise to Prince. Calem also explained that Snorlax left back to the mountains after being woken up; he wanted to catch it, but changed his mind and let it go, so now the entirety of Route 7 was back open. We got rooms after our business was taken care of and retired for the night - we got our usual rooms, but Shauna and I managed to get our own bathroom much to Shauna's glee. I was feeling really good at the moment, so I went ahead and took a shower first, getting another chance to bathe Vivian again too. Shauna went in after me, so I decided to relax and lounge around on the bed for a while before going to bed.

"I should probably call Mom," I mumbled, looking at the Holo Caster hanging from my bag. I was too lazy to reach over and make the call, so I just let it hang there and rolled over until I was on my stomach. Shauna started singing again, so I turned on the TV to try and drain out the noise; I saw Merida sit on the edge next to me, but had to pick and put Vivian on the bed after she started whining. We sat/lied there in silence before I felt Merida's elbows on my back.

_"Do you think that what that man said back in the palace is true?"_ I heard her ask. _"About the ancient race, I mean. Do you think they're linked to you and the other boy?"_

I shrugged. "They might, but we have so little information to decide if it's just a myth or truth. But if it does link back to us, then it explains why we have this ability."

_"You _could_ be a psychic,"_ Merida mused _"Psychic and Psychic types are known to be able to sense and see what others cannot. And there are even a couple who are able to communicate with Pokémon like you."_

"Hey, I'd believe it. At this point, I'm willing to believe anything. But I AM curious about this ancient race; you gotta wonder why they could exist back then and suddenly disappear eons ago without a trace. I mean, there has to be _some_thing connecting back to them, right? I wonder if the Professor knows anything about it..."

Merida shift her weight. _"Your face turned red when you met him, I noticed."_

"So?"

_"You must find him attractive."_

I felt a blush creep into my face, seeing an image of Sycamore appear in my head. "And what if I did?"

The bipedal fox shrugged. _"I'm just saying that you're not the first to find him attractive. I was born and raised by him and his assistants, so I have seen a lot of female humans walk in and become flustered whenever he was around. So I would assume that he is considered to be, what we categorize as mate worthy. He must be desired by many females."_

"Merida!" I gasped, unable to hide the blush on my face "For Arceus' sake, the man's like, half my age! Besides we...humans don't 'mate' just to have babies like Pokémon do. We...we do it for pleasure mostly."

_"That's not true. I know a couple of species who mate for pleasure. I heard that Greninja, Lucario and Zoroark were the known to be quite the charmers back in ancient times when Pokémon could be, what you call, 'husbands' and 'wives.'"_

"People still do that, I think. As a matter of fact, yeah, they do. I read somewhere that-okay, why am I even having this conversation with you in the first place? The last thing I want to talk about before going to bed is how humans and Pokémon go about having relationships. And don't try to put this off on me, because _you_ started it."

_"You and I haven't had enough proper quality time together,"_ she shrugged, before rolling over so that her head was resting on my back._ "Besides, I think it was worth it, seeing you flustered."_

"Oh yeah?" I looked back at her and grinned slyly "What about Ryu? You were eyeing him a lot back on Route 5. You must have found him attractive too, huh? After all, from what I've read, you two can breed." It was Merida's turn to have her cheeks turn pink before she sent a small flame into my back through her paw. It hurt, but I couldn't help but to giggle at my partner - revenge was a dish best served cold. Shauna finally emerged from the bathroom with a cloud of steam at her wake with Tiptup at her heels; she must have given him a bath. I asked her where Tierno and Trevor were - I haven't seen them since we arrived in town.

"They already left for Amberette Town earlier today," she explained while getting dressed "Trevor really wanted to go learn about fossils, so he and Tierny managed to cross the bridge before Snorlax came. I got a call from both of them back in the palace - they made it to Amberette Town just fine from what they told me."

"At least they're safe," I said as I rubbed in between Vivian's antennae a bit. "Any plans for tomorrow?"

"Yeah," Shauna explained "I'm going to leave for Amberette Town first thing tomorrow morning, but I'm going to keep going until I reach Shalour City. Fossils are cool and all, but they're not exactly my thing, you know? What about you?"

"I think I'll stick around and learn more about fossils," I mused "I always loved ancient Pokémon as a kid ever since I saw Lance - he's the champion of Johto, by the way - battling with an Areodactyl during the League there. It was awesome...so now I gotta find out what kind of fossils Kalos has."

"Okay. So I guess that means we'll split up after tomorrow, huh?"

"Until we meet up in Shalour City, at least." I took out my map again and started to look through it. "And from the looks of it, Shalour City's just two towns away from Amberette, right? We'll see each other in a few days after tomorrow, I believe."

"I hope so!" Shauna jumped onto her bed and sighed contently. Chester and Tiptup joined her, though Chester had to be more careful since he didn't want to pierce her with his spikes. "It's been so much fun traveling with you, Kat! And you know what? I'm really glad you moved here when you did - you've been a great friend."

"Hey, I can say the same thing about you guys," I replied, smiling at her "I honestly thought I was going to be alone again after moving here. But you guys have been the bestest friends I could have ever met. Really, I'm thankful I've gotten to know you all."

Shauna beamed before she rolled over to face me, now gaining a thoughtful expression. "Hey Kat? What were you and Calem doing up on the balcony during the fireworks? I saw you guys up there when I was in the garden."

I furrowed my brow a bit. "Whaddya mean 'what were we doing'? We were just watching the fireworks and talking."

"Talking about what? You looked awfully touched by what ever he was talking about, y'know?" There was this glint in her eye that made feel oddly uncomfortable, before the realization hit me.

"...Wait, are you implying-no! No, Shauna, I haven't known the guy for a week! We're just friends, okay? Calem just had some stuff he had to get off of his chest at the time, alright?"

"What? Was he confessing that he had a crush on you or something? C'mon, you can tell me!"

"There's nothing to tell!"

"Yes there is~" She suddenly grew a teasing smirk. "And I know how you two had a 'private' talk at the café in Lumiose - Tierno told me all about it! So c'mon, give me the details! I won't tell anyone, promise! You two make such a cute couple anyway~"

Merida was on the floor in hysterics while Chester, Tiptup and Vivian were looking at each other looking awfully confused. I refused to be put on the spot like this _twice_ in one night, so I told her that Calem wasn't my type before I threw the duvets over my head and turned off my lamp. Merida eventually stopped her laughing fit and climbed in the bed next to me, but not before earning a light kick from me after getting in. She blew a raspberry at me before she lied there while I gave Vivian one of the pillows to sleep on next to the bed. I could still hear Shauna giggling on the other side of the room as she turned off the TV and her lamp before going to bed as well. Chester and Tiptup were chittering softly for a few minutes before they fell silent. I gave Vivian one last rub before I got into a more comfortable position and relaxed, letting sleep take over my being until I fell into an well-deserved slumber.

. . .

_Tap-tap-tap._

_Tap-tap-bink-tap!_

_Bink...tap-tap-tap-bink-tap._

"Mmnn..." The eerie white glow from the moon casted its light into the room, providing the only thing that enabled me to see through the darkness surrounding us. Vivian wasn't on her pillow anymore - instead I spotted her at the couch under the window, using her antennae to tap at the glass. The noise was able to wake me up, but Shauna, Chester, Tiptup and even Merida were still sound asleep. I looked over at the clock and saw that it was almost 3 in the morning - I didn't want to get up at this ungodly hour, but I had to see what was the source of that noise and why Vivian was at the window. I made sure to be extra careful as I climbed out of bed to avoid waking Merida, and tiptoed over to the window to avoid waking Shauna and her Pokémon.

"Hey girl," I whispered once I was at the window "What's up? What are you doing up this time of night?"

_"He's hurt,"_ she murmured.

"Who's hurt?" Vivian pointed her antennae at the window, so I deduced that what ever had Vivian's attention was outside. I peered the window and could only see the inky darkness of the light, with the exception of the street lamps and the moon. However, after a few seconds of scanning the area outside, I suddenly saw something fluttering near the corner with that familiar tapping noise on the glass. Curious, I unlocked the window and slowly lifted it open, wincing at the slight creaking noise it was creating. I looked back into the room to see that my roommates were still asleep, so I released a breath that I had been holding since I started opening the window. Vivian moved closer to me and peered out the window - I heard the rustling of leaves shortly after, indicating that there was something in the bushes below. I strained my eyes to get a clear view of whatever was in them, only to pause when I saw a bat-like Pokémon lying on top of the bush. It looked up at me with fear, and tried to fly off, but it suddenly cried out in pain and fell back down while breathing heavily.

"So this is who you were talking about, huh...?" I murmured, before reaching out towards the injured Pokémon. It instantly screeched at me and tried to bite at my hand, but Vivian was able to tell it that I didn't mean it any harm. Once it calmed down, I scooped it up into my hands and brought it inside before closing the window. Now that I could see the Pokémon better, I saw that it was a purple bat covered with fur with big round ears and just as big yellow eyes. Something warm and wet ran down my fingers, and a drop of crimson stained my bare leg. It was then that I noticed that the Pokémon was bleeding form a cut on its wing, but there wasn't a tear in the membrane that would hinder its flight ability. I used one of the towels from the bathroom to cover the wound and stop the bleeding and sat it on the desk while I got a Super Potion and an Oran Berry from my bag. The bat Pokémon looked apprehensive at the items, but I told it that they Potion was a medicine to help treat the cut. It calmed down at the sound of my voice and was reassured by Vivian, so it lied there on the desk and watched me carefully. The cut wasn't severe, so I sprayed the towel with the Potion until it was soaked, and gently patted the wound with it. The Pokemon hissed at the slight sting, but it only lasted for a few seconds after the Potion was able to start working its healing magic. I decided to wrap the wing in a bandage until the Potion had fully healed the cut, and then gave it the Berry while I cleaned up the mess.

"There, that should do it," I told it once I came back "You should be able to fly by tomorrow as long as you just take it easy for the rest of the night." It made a soft chittering noise while I used my Pokédex to identify this new creature. I found out that it was a male Noibat, a Flying/Dragon type to my surprise - you wouldn't think that it would be a Dragon type after seeing it for the first time. I gave Noibat my pillow to rest on and sat it next to Vivian's pillow since he seemed to be more comfortable around her. I placed him on the pillow as Vivian crawled over to climb on hers before I climbed back into bed and lied back down. I was going to have a hard time getting up in the morning, but I couldn't ignore an injured Pokémon even if I tried. I watched Nobat shift around on his pillow before he finally relaxed and laid there next to Vivian; He went to sleep moments later before his new friend followed suit. I smiled at them both, relieved that the li'l guy was going to be alright before I rolled over and closed my eyes. Sleep came to me quickly, and I was out before I even realized it.

* * *

**E/N**: Gaaaaah, this chapter too a long time D:

The double battle between you, Calem/Serena, Tierno and Trevor won't appear until later, unfortunately. I wish you could battle all of your friends in the game more often than Calem/Serena - you only battle Shauna, Tierno and Trevor twice during the whole game and continue to battle Calem in nearly every town and route to walk on.

Speaking of Calem, I decided to give him the female Espurr instead of the usual male - the female can learn better moves once it evolves in a Meowstic, and I thought Calem deserved the better Pokémon in my opinion. I love both Meowstic, but the female is just awesome. Also, I changed up the fireworks scene on the balcony for a few reasons; I like how it kinda implies Shauna likes the male protagonist, saying that she never saw fireworks "alone with a boy" before. If you're the female protagonist, she just says that she hopes you two can become good friends. As you know, I'm trying to deepen the character development between all of them, therefore I had Calem meet Kat at the balcony rather than Shauna to have that "bonding" moment between them. I didn't like the fact that Calem just only wanted to battle and compete with you to see who's stronger - at least Shauna tries to have some fun with you while you're exploring through Kalos; that was the reason behind my altered scene on the balcony up there.

Oh, before anyone gets on me, yes, I did say that I wasn't planning on putting romance in this, but I know people are going to be wondering if that's a lie after Shauna implies that Calem and Kat like each other. Now, I'm not planning on pairing the two up - I know there are people who are fond of the Calem/Serena pairing, and I don't want to hear any butthurt because Calem is with my character from the game. There might be some fluff between them, but that's it; Things might change later on in the future, but we'll cross that bridge when it comes, 'kay?

I don't like the Parfum Palace owner - he rips you out of 1,000 bucks, plus he's a rich snob anyway. I really did feel sorry for his Furfrou in the game, reason why I made it to be the castle owner's Pokémon instead. Also, I made the currency to be the same as in the Mystery Dungeon games; I hear a lot of people say that the currency in the main games are based off of Yen, but I didn't want to spark any kind of debate, so I made it Poké instead to make it easier for everyone. Oh, and the reason behind the conversation between Kat and Merida? Fan art. Lots, and lots of fan art...*shudders*

Amberette Town and the Glittering Cave are up next, and you know what that means~ We get to meet the fabulously stylish antagonist team of the game! See you guys then! :D


	8. Onward to More Adventures

**A/N: **I'M ALIIIIIIIIVE!

Yes! I'm finally back from my very long hiatus - you can thank the recent holiday and visiting relatives for that. I've literally had no time to write up until right now.

By the way, I just realized I've been spelling Ambrette Town wrong. I'm so used to calling it "Amberette" Town for some odd reason...I fixed it in this chapter.

* * *

"So, we meet up in Shalour City, right?"

"Yup! Well, we'll be off then. See you in a few days~!" Shauna waved at us before bounded out the door with Tiptup and Electra at her heels. I was sitting on the bed, still in my pajamas sorting out my clothes from my bag. Shauna got up extra early to get a head start on her continuous trip to Shalour City. She said she would make a quick stop at Cyllage City to rest before she would keep going so she wouldn't tire herself out too much. I ended up sleeping in after finding Noibat last night. Speaking of him, he seemed to be recovering really well - he's been flying around the room all morning ever since it woke up. He and Vivian seemed fond of each other - Vivian was the one who found him after all, so that wasn't too much of a surprise. I didn't catch him, though - I'm planning on getting his wing checked on in the Center and then releasing it once I get outside. It was close to 11 in the morning - I would have been dressed by now if I wasn't having such a hard time trying to decide what to wear. I'm not a big fashionista or anything, but July had came in a week ago, and summer has reached its peak. The weather has been especially hot as of late, and with me traveling a lot, I didn't want to overdress in this heat. I really wasn't getting anywhere with my decision, so I settled with wearing a red midriff tank top, a pair of jeans with holes and sandals after showering.

I double-checked my things before leaving, keeping my word and had Noibat's wing looked at before I left the Center. I called Mom while I waited - I used those phones with the video monitors in the Center's lobby rather than using my Holo Caster. She was really glad to see me after not hearing from me for the last few days; I told her everything that's happened at Parfum Palace and Route 7. I didn't tell her about my new ability to talk with Pokémon though - I decided to save that for another time.

"Sounds like you've had quite the adventure," she remarked "I saw the pictures you sent me, by the way. What did the palace look like on the inside?"

"It was just full of gold and a lot of fancy stuff - nothing interesting," I replied "After being juiced out of 1,000 Poké, I won't be going back there any time soon. Anyway, I'm going to Ambrette Town once I leave here, so I'll be on Route 7 and 8 for most of the day until I get there."

"Mmm...I might take a trip up there myself. sounds like an interesting place." Vivian managed to climb her way up on the stool and peeked at the screen. Mom instantly squealed and starting cooing at her. "What a cutie! Is it yours?"

I nodded. "Yeah. Her name's Vivian." I rubbed her head again. "Professor Sycamore gave her to me. She was an abandoned Pokémon."

"Really? How awful...You have to wonder why there are some Trainers out there who would be cruel enough to just abandon a Pokémon with little to no consent about its feelings. It's one of the reasons why I'm especially glad that I had you for a daughter - you have you father's kind heart, you know? He could never leave a sick or injured Pokémon out in the wild without trying to help it. I guess that's why he loves his job as a Pokémon Ranger...Oddly enough, I can't picture you as a Ranger despite the similarities between you two."

"Really?" I tilted my head slightly. "Why?"

"You may have your father's kind heart, but you have my vital spirit," she winked at me "You were always a wily and energetic child, even as a baby! Most infants would cry at the sight of Ryder, but you just climbed on his back and rode him around like a natural. It could have been my side of the gene pool effecting you, but it's honestly hard to say. This is why I'm glad you decided to go on this journey - I hope that you will discover something about yourself, maybe even find out what your calling would be in life. You choose the path you wish to tread that will lead you to a promising future."

Discover something about myself, huh? After finding out that I can speak to Pokémon, I wouldn't be surprised as to what else I might find out about myself as I continued my journey. I was about to reply to what she said when my name was called over the intercom. I told Mom that I had to go and that I would call her when I reached Ambrette Town before we hung up. Noibat was at the counter waiting for me, and flew around me as I thanked the nurse before leaving the Center. I was immediately hit with a wave of hot air once I stepped outside, so I turned on a heel, went back into the Center and purchased some water (for my Pokémon - mostly Vivian) and some lemonade for myself. I was worried that Vivian would dry out if she stayed out in this heat, so I returned her to her Pokéball until we were in a more desired area for her. Merida, being a Fire type, was not bothered by the heat - I believe she enjoyed it, since the orange fur in her ears was radiating its own heat. Noibat was indifferent - he was covered in fur but didn't seem to mind the heat as he rode on my shoulder.

We passed Shabboneau Castle on our way towards Route 7 - Prince was out sitting under the shadow of the castle in front of the drawbridge to keep himself cool. I waved at him and he barked happily at us before I bid him goodbye and headed towards the gate out of town. Noibat shifted on my shoulder before he spread his wings and flew off my shoulder. I expected him to fly off back to wherever it came from, but he still stayed by my side, which surprised me. I wonder why he was hanging around this long?

Despite the heat, the walk through Route 7 was moderately pleasant. We passed the crossroads and continued on until we reached a Pokémon Daycare further down the path. I stood outside the fence and watched the baby Pokémon play with each other - some of them took noticed of our presence and drew closer to the fence, and I started cooing at them out of habit. A Breeder who was outside monitoring them saw me hanging around the fence and decided to come over and say hi. We introduced ourselves and made small talk while we watched the Pokémon in the yard.

"I've been working here for almost 4 years," he told me "My wife and I took over the business from my mother after she retired a couple of years back. We rebuilt the place from the ground up to improve the habitats for the Pokémon to stay in."

"How does someone go about becoming a Breeder?" I asked "I mean, what would you have to do in order to get the permit and the license?"

"Usually a person would have to go to school for a few years - about 4 or 5 - and take Pokémon Biology classes as their major. You would be exposed to a lot of interaction with Pokémon and learn about how to care for specific types, specific needs and even grooming. Breeding Pokémon is the hard part - since we are in charge of the distribution for starter Pokémon, we have to learn how to breed certain Pokémon in various combinations to get certain Abilities, natures and movesets. This requires a LOT of time and energy from both ends - the Pokémon are the ones doing the breeding while we monitor and hatch the eggs and raise them to a desirable level before giving them to who ever has requested the Pokémon in question. It's a lot of hard work and dedication, but seeing these li'l guys grow up into healthy adults makes it all worth it. We strive to make them happy, after all. Are you interested in becoming a Breeder one day?"

I shook my head. "No, I'm just interested. I never really understood what Breeders had to do in order to earn their permit, along with what their job requires you to do. I just know that you guys are responsible for sending regional starters to the labs." I looked back into the yard; two Litleo were play-fighting. "My Dad's a Ranger - his job is much harder and more dangerous than a Breeder. But he loves Pokémon to the point where he dedicates his life to protecting them and the environment. He's been at his job for years - even after I was born."

"Your dad sounds like a great man," Jon - that was his name, by the way - said, then asked to look at my Pokémon. We had to go inside the actual building since I was worried Vivian would get too hot. His wife was working at the reception desk, filling out paperwork with a Skitty sitting on the desk next to her. Jon introduced us when we walked in - her name was Mercy. Jon looked over both of them and even Noibat - I explained how I had found him with an injured wing last night while in Camphrier Town. He didn't belong to me, but Jon still insisted on looking it over. "They all looked to be well raised, especially your Goomy. Not a lot of people bother with trying to raise one, and so early. Noibat are rare, though, and aren't found around here. I wonder what it was doing around Camphrier Town..."

"It's a nocturnal Pokémon, isn't it?" I said "Maybe it was out looking for food. A lot of Pokémon hang around towns and cities because people feed them, after all."

"True. Well, besides that, I have to say that you have the potential to become a Breeder if you wanted to. But I see that you're already a Trainer for a reason, but I do hope you would consider it one day."

"I might look into it one day. I can kinda see myself becoming a Breeder when I'm an adult, but hey, who knows?" I got up and returned Vivian to her Ball. "I thank you for inviting me in, but I should get going."

"Are you going to Cyllage City?" Mercy asked.

"I'm making a stop in Ambrette Town before going there," I explained "I want to go to learn a few things about fossils."

"Okay, then you're in the clear," she explained "You see, at the end of Route 7 there's a cave that connects to Ambrette Town and Cyllage City and serves as a shortcut for the residents on both sides. But for some reason, there are these large boulders blocking the way to Cyllage City at the northern entrance. You'll have to take the southern entrance if you want to get through. If you had a Pokémon that could use Strength, you could get through just fine, but..."

I waved dismissively. "It's fine. If I have to go around, the long way, then I will." I thanked Jon and Mercy for allowing me to enter their home before I left and continued on down the Route. Some of the baby Pokémon that were still in the yard followed us until they reached the end of the fence where Merida and I bid them farewell and continued on. Route 7 was very picturesque, much like Palais Lane; A river provided the perfect view and feel of the area whilst a gentle breeze blew through the many flowers that decorated the grass. There was a an odd aroma that wafted through the area - well actually, there were 2. One was the distinguish aroma of cotton candy, and the other was similar to perfume. I thought they were coming form other Trainers who were out here, but after going through the grass and flowers to look for other Pokémon, the scent grew much stronger. After investigating some more, I discovered that the aromas were coming from 2 new Pokémon: Spritzee and Swirlex, pure Fairy types native to this region. Spritzee was the one giving off the perfume scent while Swirlex was behind the cotton candy aroma. I was tempted to catch one of the Spritzee, but I was chased out of the grass after a Swirlex started biting at my ankles. For a little puff of cuteness, they had sharp and very painful teeth. The Spritzee flew off due to the commotion we were making, so I couldn't catch it anyway. Slightly defeated, I kept walking. A few battles were able to lift my spirits, though - Merida was an unstoppable force, defeating any Pokémon that got in her way. Vivian was having a little more trouble, and was close to being knocked out a few times if I hadn't switched to Merida in time. I was beginning to understand what Professor Sycamore meant when people don't bother with training Goomy - they were a challenge to train, but there was no way I was giving up on Vivian. Surprisingly enough, Noibat took part in some of the battles as well, and I realize that Noibat was based mostly on speed and special attack and had no problem holding his own against the other Trainers' Pokémon, despite his small size. We were about halfway down the Route after defeating another Trainer as Noibat flew around us as if he had an unlimited supply of energy.

_"Haha! That was AWESOME! I never realized how good it felt to beat other Pokémon in a battle! You guys aren't half bad yourselves - I might hang around for a while!"_ he exclaimed.

I looked over at him and hummed. "_Now_ I can hear you..."

Noibat suddenly stopped flying and hovered in front of me, causing me to stop._ "Whaddya mean you can 'hear me'?"_

_"Kat can understand what we say, unlike most humans,"_ Merida explained _"She, along with another human boy, are able to speak to us."_

_"Really?"_ he asked, tilting his head _"So, you can understand what I'm saying, yeah? You can hear me right now?"_

"Yup," I nodded "every word."

_"Huh."_ He landed on my shoulder again, allowing me to continued walking. He was silent for a moment before he asked _"So why did you help me last night?"_

"What do you mean 'why?' I would had to have a cold and uncaring nature to just ignore an injured creature. I can never turn a blind eye on any Pokémon that needs help. Even if they didn't trust me, I would stay by its side until it did, even if it meant waiting for days."

_"But_ why_?"_ he pressed _"They don't belong to you, and you don't know them. And would you be willing to do the same for other humans if they were in trouble too?"_

I paused for a moment and frowned, contemplating my answer. "...I would, but then I would most likely regret it later. There are a lot of ungrateful people out in the world, and they take you for granted and use you when you're only try to help them and maybe be their friend. But Pokémon are different - they may be able to reason and think like humans can, but they are thankful to the ones that help, and would never try to take their kindness and use it to their advantage." I looked down at the ground as I walked along the path. "I...I've tried helping other people, being kind to them when they didn't have any one else to turn to. But all they did was use me and toss me to the side when they felt I was no longer of any value. That's why I...that's why I never really had any friends as I grew up, and I thought I was better off alone. My only friend has always been Ryder, our pet Rhyhorn back at home, so I never really went outside much - well, I did, but I would always stay in our yard. And I couldn't explore any further than my hometown because I didn't have any Pokémon on me. I lived in Johto then; it's a region far from here, by the way. My mom and I moved to Kalos a couple of months back, and I recently started my journey as a Trainer."

_"Interesting. So, what changed all that?"_

"I met my friends." I smiled, remembering when I first met Calem, Shauna, Trevor and Tierno. "They...sorta opened up my eyes to see that all people aren't as bad as I made them seem to be. It's just that I met the wrong ones."

_"Vivian would say the same,"_ Merida added _"After all, she was abandoned by a bad human and thought that they were all the same. Then she met you and saw how kind you and your friends were."_

"You really have to be careful about the people you meet," I said "Many are able to mask their bad nature by acting kind and honest, and many fall for it because they're not able to see through their lies. There are some people who are able to look past that, but I don't believe I'm one of those people, so I try to be careful while I'm out travelling."

_"Hey, speaking of that, what exactly are you doing?"_ Noibat asked _"Like, are you guys going to a specific place or just walking around until your feet get tired?"_

_"We're on a journey to complete something called a Pokédex,"_ Merida explained _"It's a little computer that is able to gain data from Pokémon after it scans them and adds the data to a page. The main reason we're travelling together is to completely fill it, but we can do other stuff too. For instance, Kat is entering the Pokémon League, so that means we have to travel around the region and challenge places called Gyms and get a Gym Badge. The Gyms are ruled by humans called Gym Leaders, and they're really strong. Kat and I challenged one the day after we met, and we won! That's how I evolved, actually - she only had me at her side, but we trained the day of the battle to prepare ourselves, and we were able to overcome the challenge that we faced together. It was amazing. But right now we're going to a town to look at fossils, and probably stay there for a couple of days before moving on. It's really been fun so far - I've been able to see the world beyond the lab and have so much fun in the process! And you know what? Kat and I are best friends -_ I_ was her starter, after all._"

Noibat grew quiet again and kept looking at the road ahead. Merida on the other hand, suddenly seemed proud of herself and walked with her head held up with pride, and I made a remark that she was acting like the girl we met back on Route 4. She instantly wrinkled up her nose and toned down her prideful appearance. I laughed as we came up to another grand building; it had the same architectural design as the Shabboneau Castle and Parfum Palace, but it was much taller and even extended across the river. There wasn't anything remotely interesting about this place, nothing worth stopping to go in anyway. But that changed when I saw a familiar face walk out of the double brass doors...

"Thanks again! I'll be back soon!" Viola, accompanied with her Vivillon, waved at whoever was inside before she closed the door and turned around, then paused when she saw me. "Oh! Kat! Long time no see! I see that you're doing well these days."

"I can say the same for you," I smiled "So what's up? What'cha been up to since we last saw each other?"

"The same, really," she replied "but I have been out getting some pictures for my gallery. I see you've gotten pretty far in the last couple of days. Where are you heading to now?"

"Ambrette Town," I explained "I want to learn more about the fossils they supposedly have there. After that I'm going to Cyllage City and just keep going from there. By the way, what is this place?"

"This is the Battle Chateau," she explained "Call it the social group for Pokémon battling. Once you enter, you are given a rank of nobility - the more you battle, the higher your rank will go, but that's only after you have defeated every Trainer that is the same rank as you. It's pretty straight forward, and a good place to train when you need to. Just about anyone can join, but you would need at least one Gym Badge to be accepted. I'm a member as well, so I come here ever so often to train and further my rank. But between you and me, most of the people who join here are those uppity, rich snobby types that have silver spoons stuck up their ass. Besides Hennessy - the overseer - and a few others, I'm not to fond of the majority who are here."

"Interesting," I hum "though I might have to come here another time. I want to get to Ambrette Town before it gets dark."

"Understandable. But if you decide to come back and become a member, make sure that you show them your Badge - as a matter of fact, tell Hennessy that you're a personal friend of mine and that I sent you. You'll be recognized for your strength and accepted instantly."

I nodded. "Got it." Viola smiled with satisfaction before she said he had to get back to the Gym and hoped that we would meet up again soon before she left with Vivillon. I looked back at the Battle Chateau, making a mental memo to come back here if I felt a need to train my Pokémon before I continued back down the Route. I could see the cave up ahead; we were close. We traveled in complete silence before Noibat shifted and crawled across my shoulders, down my arm and into my bag. "Hey, what are you doing?"

_"Jeez, this thing's like a bottomless pit!"_ was the reply I got_ "Where do you keep-oh. Nevermind."_ He climbed out and flew in front of me with a Pokéball in his mouth and dropped it into my hand._ "I've decided! I'm going with ya! And I'm not changing my mind either!"_ He pressed the button with his nose before I could say a word, activating the capture as he was turned into energy and pulled in. The Ball only shook once before I heard the click, indicating that I had caught Noibat. I blinked before I released him.

"I had no plans on catching you," I told him as he flew in front of me "What made you want to come with us?"

He shrugged. _"I don't have anything else better to do. Besides, you guys seem pretty interesting and cool - I wanna see what kind of adventure I'd have if I stayed with you. And it'll be really interesting because you're able to talk to Pokémon; it makes it easier for both of us y'know? Also, I...sorta wanna repay you and the Goomy for helping me last night. So I'm gonna help you win your other Badges, okay? I wanna evolve...and go beyond my limits! And you will help me get there, I just know it! I can tell you're very different from other humans I've seen and come in contact with. Now, onward to our next destination!"_

"Well, welcome to the team, then," I said before we continued on "Hey Noibat, now that you're a member, you're gonna need a nickname. I gave Merida and Vivian theirs, so now you need one."

_"Okay,"_ he perched himself on my shoulder again _"What did you have in mind?"_

"Well, I wanna name you Toothless."

_"Toothless? Why would you want to name me that?! I have teeth, after all!"_

"No, it's not that. See, since you're so fast and have strong special attacks, you remind me of a dragon I saw in a movie that was named Toothless. He was really fast and obliterated anything in its path with his plasma blasts! Plus, he also looked like a bat-dragon like you in a way."

_"Oh. Huh...being named after a strong dragon from a movie sounds cool actually." _He scratched his chin with his claw._ "Yeah...yeah! I like it! From now on I'll be known as Toothless! Sweet!"_

I laughed at Toothless' boundless enthusiasm as we climbed the steps and approached the cave. I bought a flashlight from the Mart just for situations like this where we would have to traverse through any caves with little to no light. It was daytime still, but I could only see nothing but inky darkness ahead. I clicked on the flashlight before entering, with Merida and Toothless by my side. After consulting my map, I discovered that this cave was called Connecting Cave. It was your typical common cave - dark, damp, eerie, and full of Zubat. It's surname was "Zubat Roost" for a good reason - I wish I had bought some Repels before coming in here. Fortunately, they were little to no problem for my team - Merida obliterated everything in her path while Toothless blew them away with his amazing speed and attacks. I let Vivian battle a few times, but rarely had to thanks to the Exp. Share. There were other Pokémon in the cave besides Zubat, surprisingly; there were only two - Meditite and Whismur, so I filled in their pages anyway. I managed to find another Trainer in here - a Breeder-to-be as I called them. He was far from a challenge since Merida swept through his team. The cave itself was another linear path, so there really wasn't a lot for me to explore. We were almost out and on to the next Route, until we ran into a slight hinderence...Two huge boulders were blocking a west and south path to the cave, and it was then when I remembered that there were two entrances; One was a shortcut that went straight into Cyllage City while the other was a detour to Ambrette Town. The path to Cyllage City was blocked due to boulders blocking the way, so any and all travelers would have to take the south entrance and take the detour to Ambrette Town and work your way to Cyllage City that way. I couldn't believe I forgot Mercy's advice so quickly...

I was contemplating hitting myself in the head with the flashlight while Merida and Toothless looked at the boulder. "Stupid, stupid, stupid! How could I have forgotten something so vital?"

_"Hey, you're not the only idiot here,"_ Toothless reassured, perching himself on top of the rock _"We all heard what the lady said, but we just forgot."_

_"Besides it's not like we don't have a way through,"_ Merida added _"Let's just backtrack and go through the other entrance. Simple."_

"Yeah...I guess we have no other choice." I looked back at the rock, studying it a little closer than I had earlier. Casting my flashlight over it, I saw that its shape was very close to a perfect square if it were for the rugged sides. It looked like it could be moved with enough power, but the surface was flat and there was a path leading to Ambrette Town on the other side...I wonder..."Hey, Merida, can you hold the flashlight real quick?"

_"Um, sure,"_ she took the flashlight into her paws._ "What for?"_ I said nothing as I gripped one of the lumps on the boulder and pulled myself up. _"Kat, what are you doing?! That's very dangerous! You might hurt yourself!"_

"This is nothing compared to what I had to do back in the Dark Cave," I grunted, before gripping the edge and pulling myself on top of the rock. "Phew! See? I'm fine - nothing to worry about." I turned and looked at the other path, using the light from the flashlight to see; I could make out some more naturally made stairs and led up to the exit on the other side, where the summer rays were able to come in, albeit a little. "On the plus side, we're almost outta here. The exit is just a few more paces ahead."

Merida sighed. _"You are so reckless..."_ She tossed the flashlight up in the air having Toothless catch it with ease before she jumped and gracefully made it over the boulder. She turned and looked up at me with a smirk. _"Are you coming or what?"_

I pouted as I slowly climbed down on the other side. "Show off."

_"Well, ya gotta admit, the girl's got some moves."_ Toothless remarked. I took the flashlight from him and said nothing and continued on, only to hear my two partners snicker and giggle behind me. I told them to hush as we walked out of the cave and back into the harsh heat - the cave had provided us with shade, and the moist air made it very cool and comfortable. The hot afternoon sun was directly above us, wiping away any sense of relief we had left (except Merida - she loved the heat). It took me a moment to realize that Route 8 was up on a cliff face overlooking an ocean - there was nothing but the blue sea stretching out for miles ahead of us, while the Route itself was a rugged terrain with only a handful of greenery. I put away my flashlight and planned out my path and began to walk, only to be interrupted by a familiar pair of people.

"Bonjour Kat~! I trust that you are faring well?" Dexio and Sina approached us from the tall grass before us - both were huddled under a cream colored parasol being held by Sina. "Surprised to see us? I'm surprised at ourselves for being out in this dreadful heat!"

"Though it is good to see you again," Dexio smiled "I see you and your Braixen are getting along well. And you've caught a Noibat have you? They are quite rare around these parts."

"He had injured himself the other night and I helped him," I explained "He's been following me since then."

"Anyhoo, we were sent to find you and your friends per Sycamore's request," Sina explained "As you know, Kalos is a very big region, yes? Therefore, the region is broken up into 3 main areas. Because of this, your Pokédex is unable to record every Pokémon from each area...without a certain upgrade, that is."

"In other words, we were sent to upgrade your Pokédex to have the Coastal option - this gives you the ability to fill in the pages of Pokémon only from the Coastal area. It's an easier way for both you and us to study the distribution of Pokémon in the entire region. Now then...if you don't mind, I will need to see your Pokédex for just a moment." There was no reason for me to refuse, so I gladly gave my Pokédex to Dexio to have it upgraded. He flipped to on of its sides before pulling out a chip of some sort from his pocket, and installed it. He pushed a few buttons once the chip was installed before handing it back to me. "There, all done. You are now able to gather data from Pokémon in this general area, up until you reach Lumiose City again, that is. I sincerely hope it will be useful to you."

"It will, thank you," I said, putting away the device.

"Well, that's 4 down, now we need to find Shauna," Sina hummed "Anyway, if you're heading to Ambrette Town, just continue down this path and you will be there within the hour. The rugged terrain makes the trek a little more difficult, but for you it shouldn't be a problem. As for us, we will be taking our leave - the faster we get out of this heat the better."

"Bon voyage for now, Kat. I know we will meet again in the near future." And with that, that left, going into the entrance of Connecting Cave, much to my surprise. I honestly didn't know about those two - Dexio was fine, but it was Sina who was the real character between the two of them. I shook my head and started walking again, shuffling through the first patch of tall grass of the Route. The first Pokémon I encountered was a Bagon - I was really tempted to catch it since it was a cool Pokémon in itself, but I already had two Dragon types, so I settled for knocking it out with Toothless. As we were told, the Route here was rugged - it was a step up on the difficulty from the previous Routes we traversed, but it wasn't anything we couldn't handle. Toothless had no trouble and simply flew over us, Merida's swift feet and agility gave her the ability to leap and jump over nearly every obstacle in the same manner she did with the boulder. I had to rely on my own physical abilities I gained from previous outdoor Ranger training with Dad to overcome the many rocks, inclines and ledges we came across. I filled in more pages of other Pokémon that lived here in the meantime - there were Drifloon, Meinfoo, Zangoose, Seviper, Spoink, and a new Pokémon native to Kalos called Inkay. I managed to find at least two or three other Trainers out here - I believe they were residents of Ambrette Town, since there weren't a lot of them, and they seemed accustomed to this rough path. I was very thankful when I saw the town in the distance - I was only minutes away from getting out of this heat. I was covered with sweat, my jeans were dirty and gained another hole, and I somehow broke one of the straps to my sandals. I was half tempted to take them off and walk barefoot, but the jagged rocks littering the area kept me from doing so. On the plus side, we did find this little area before the town's entrance that was a small pit with naturally made stepping stones that led to the other side. The path next to it was straight forward with a single ledge blocking the way into town, but hopping from stone to stone to reach other other side was more interesting than walking. Despite the terrible heat, Merida and I had a lot of fun on those stones, even if I almost fell off a few times. We finally made it to Ambrette, and the first place I went to was the Pokémon Center - my feet were _killing_ me.

"It's going to be a long time before I wear sandals again," I moaned whilst massaging my feet "I haven't been in this much pain since that trip through Mt. Silver!"

_"It wasn't that bad,"_ Merida said_ "If you were able to climb over a giant rock, then that shouldn't have been a problem."_

"It's not that, it's just that I didn't have on the proper gear to hike through there." I held up the broken sandals for emphasis "In other words, I'm wearing sneakers and boots until further notice. I'm glad Mom packed a pair before I left - I seriously need them right now..." I dug through my bag, looking for the pair of shoes while Merida sat next to me on the couch. Toothless was on the table eating a couple of berries I picked from a few trees back on Route 8 - we haven't really eaten anything all day since we were too focused on reaching Ambrette Town before it got dark, and here it is almost 4 o' clock and I'm still not that hungry. I could feed my Pokémon before I left though - they needed the energy more than I did. I finally found my shoes whilst thinking about what we could have for a quick lunch, but the sound of swift but clawed feet on a tile floor brought me back to reality. Looking up, I was found myself face-to-face with an Absol - it stayed silent as it stared at me with those sharp red eyes that ended up unsettling me just a bit. Merida was about to go on the offensive when Calem walked over. Turns out that the Absol belonged to him; he just caught it while traversing through Route 8.

"His name is Loki," he explained - we were sitting on a bench overlooking the sea near another cliff near the southern area of town "I caught him shortly before entering town. He hasn't said much since I caught him, though..."

"He spoke to you?" I asked.

"Only once so far, and that was when I first met him. And even then he was mumbling to himself I think. I couldn't make out what it was, but I heard something like 'the Children of the Earth live on' before he approached me. After that, nothing else."

I frowned a bit. "That's weird. And what did he mean by that? Who are the Children of the Earth?"

"I don't know, and I never heard of them. But I believe it has something to do with Absol's ability to sense disasters. What is it I don't know, and I won't make assumptions that aren't true. I believe he knows something that we don't, and what ever it is, he won't tell us. Not now, at least. But I'm not going to force him into talking to me either; it's his choice after all, not mine."

I looked over at Loki, who was in what looked like some sort of staring contest with Athena, as if they were trying to read each other's mind. "Well, there's nothing we can do about it, right? Maybe he's just waiting for the right time to share what ever it is he's keeping secret. More often times than not, Pokemon are able to see and know things that we don't."

Calem nodded. "That is true. And I honestly believe it should stay that way - if Pokémon wanted to share their secrets with us, they would have a long time ago. Who's to say that there are some things we're better off not knowing?"

"No one ever said we had to solve every one, but I guess people can't resist digging up some sort of secret, no matter what it is. By the way, what happened to you?"

Calem was covered with dirt from head to toe - he wasn't wearing his usual blue pants and jacket and boots, they were replaced with a white t-shirt, a pair of khakis and tennis shoes. Ugly blotches of dirt and mud were all over his shirt and pants, and he had a bandage on his left cheek covering a scar. "I uh...I did some gardening before coming here. There's a Berry Farm on Route 7 owned by an old man and his granddaughter. The grandfather threw out his back and couldn't work on it, and his granddaughter was too young, so I offered to take care of it for him. I would have been here earlier if I hadn't made a stop here, so that's why I arrived shortly after you did."

"So you're a farmer now, huh?" I laughed.

"Well, yeah," he shrugged "My Mom used to have a flower garden in our backyard, but Bunnelby would constantly dig it up, so we got rid of it. Oddly enough, I enjoy gardening and growing things like berries and crops - it feels good to raise something with your own two hands rather than buying it at a store or something, y'know?"

"I can understand that..." I stood up, stretched, and looked back towards the rest of town. I haven't had the time to really sit back and really look at this place; It was just like Camphrier Town, albeit a little smaller. Since it was sitting on a cliff overlooking the sea, the air here was slightly cooler and had a salty scent to it. There was little to no green here - there were a few houses that had some flower pots and the occasional flower bed, but besides that, it was all rock. I spotted the Fossil Lab just behind the bench a yard away. "Oh! Since you're here, wanna come with me to go look at fossils? That's the whole reason I'm here honestly."

"Sure." Calem stood up and rolled his shoulder, causing it to pop. "We should probably stop by the Lab, first. We might learn something in there before going to the Cave." I nodded before following Calem towards the Fossil Lab, our Pokémon at our heels. I found myself gazing at Loki, who kept his gaze ahead of him as he walked alongside his new Trainer. I couldn't help but to wonder what that Absol was keeping to himself...I could tell Merida had the same thing on her mind, or something similar, since she was constantly turning her gaze at Loki every other second. Athena was stoic, as always, whilst walking alongside Calem, but I could have sworn I kept seeing her folded ears lift ever so slightly, which is something she never does unless she's attacking (from what I read from my Pokédex and from what I heard from Calem), unless there was another reason why she was allowing some of her psychic energy to leak out. Was she perhaps...conversing with Loki without us knowing? I had the slightest clue, and I decided not to pry about it either. I instead kept focusing on the task at hand as we entered the Fossil Lab.

* * *

**E/N**: Jesus, this chapter took WAAAY longer than it should have...Originally, I was going to have it keep going until Calem and Kat reached Glittering Cave; unfortunately, I'm very impatient and I wanted to update this since I haven't for a while, so I'll just have to end it off right here and continue it in the next part...sorry about that guys.

So, yeah, Kat's third member is Noibat - a Pokémon that is now a Noivern in my Y file - who is indeed named Toothless. For those of you who don't know the reference, I named my Noibat after Toothless, a Night Fury dragon from the movie How To Train Your Dragon. If you haven't seen it, I DEMAND that you do so - if you love animated movies and dragons, you seriously have to watch that movie. It's SO GOOD...*ahem* Anyway, I was heavily debating on whether or not Kat would keep one of the fossil Pokémon, and if she did, which one she would keep. I finally decided on which one she will have, but it will be revealed once we cross that bridge - I'm not giving out hints this time.

So...what's Loki keeping secret? Who knows...keep reading to find out~


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